A four-month sting operation in the Venice area has resulted in 19 arrests, several of which were made early Wednesday morning in a coordinated raid on residences of alleged gang members.
The operation targeted alleged members of the Venice 13, or Venice Trece, gang.
"We'll continue working with LAPD to reduce the flow of firearms trafficking," said Chris Hoffman, a spokesman for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Hoffman said that suspects had sold drugs to undercover agents. The federal firearms charges are for possession by a convicted felon, he said. There are also state charges.
"When violent crime is reduced, everyone wins— the city of Los Angeles and its citizens," ATF Special Agent John A. Torres said in a statement.
According to the statement, the following six suspects were named in federal criminal complaints:
- George R. Lopez, 41, Lawndale, felon in possession of a firearm;
- Salvador Garcia, 29, Mid-City Los Angeles, conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance;
- Cesar Perez Rios, 39, South Los Angeles, felon in possession of a firearm;
- Mario Vincent Lopez, 43, Lawndale, felon in possession of a firearm;
- Joey Edward Leyba, 37, West Los Angeles, distribution of a controlled substance;
- Maribel Gordio, 35, South Los Angeles, conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance.
Five of the suspects were arrested in the action early Wednesday morning. The sixth, Rios, turned himself in later in the day.
A and in February have both been determined to be gang-related. The boardwalk shooting is , though.
