A large-scale investigation led to the arrest of 39 people allegedly linked to the Mexican Mafia. The operation, dubbed 'Operation Los Impuestos,' targeted the gang's activities in narcotics, weapons dealing, homicides, and extortion.
An expansive San Diego-area investigation into a gang whose influence stretched into narcotics, weapons dealing, homicides, and extortion led local and federal authorities to arrest dozens of people allegedly affiliated with the Mexican Mafia, the District Attorney’s Office announced Tuesday. Operation Los Impuestos, or “the taxes” in Spanish, spearheaded by the San Diego Police Department, resulted in the arrests last week of 39 people believed to be involved in the powerful prison gang.
The department collaborated with the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the district attorney’s gang unit. The suspects are largely street gang members who “took orders from cartel bosses operating in state prison and preyed on business owners by forcing mafia-style taxes,” District Attorney Summer Stephan said Tuesday at a news conference. As she spoke, Stephan was flanked by San Diego Police Chief Scott Wahl and other investigators, as well as tables holding more than a dozen rifles, shotguns, and handguns. “They dealt illegal drugs, including pounds of deadly fentanyl, committed widespread violence, and trafficked weapons such as ghost guns and AR-15s,” Stephan said. One of the cases charged as a result of the operation involved the homicide of an 18-year-old National City man, Juan Carlos Porter, in Chicano Park in September.The operation stemmed from a previous, yearlong investigation by San Diego police into an extortion ring in Barrio Logan that resulted in the arrest of six people in September, said Capt. Manny Del Toro. Business owners were threatened with violence and vandalism if they did not pay money for “protection,” authorities alleged. In continued interviews with victims and witnesses, “we found that that was just a small part of the problem,” Del Toro said. “It was actually bigger.” The suspects were also involved in drug and weapons trafficking and were also taxing businesses in San Diego’s Mid City neighborhoods and National City. In one incident, Molotov cocktails were thrown into a business last summer after the business owner “pushed back” on the taxes, Del Toro said. Del Toro said the orders for the extortion and trafficking schemes were handed down by Ronaldo Ayala, a Mexican Mafia leader from National City who has been on Death Row since 1989. Ayala is also accused of offering protection to former Sinaloa drug kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, who is serving a life sentence in a maximum lockup in Colorado.The businesses threatened were mostly small barber shops and taco restaurants, however, operations such as cannabis dispensaries and hookah lounges and businesses suspected of being fronts for drug trafficking were also targeted. All of the arrests “went smoothly,” Del Toro said. Some suspects were already in custody at the time of the arrests. “This is the biggest (operation) that I’ve seen in my 35 years as far as significance,” Del Toro said. “Despite the success of this, there’s a lot more out there,” he added. “Right now we want to seize the opportunity, we want to show the message to the community that we will follow up, we are going to take action.
MEXICAN MAFIA GANG ARRESTS SAN DIEGO POLICE OPERATION LOS IMPUESTOS EXTORTION DRUG TRAFFICKING WEAPONS VIOLENCE
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Mexican President Proposes 'Mexican America' as Trump Suggests 'Gulf of America'Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum jokingly proposed renaming North America 'Mexican America' in response to US President-elect Donald Trump's suggestion to change the Gulf of Mexico's name to 'Gulf of America'.
Read more »
Mexican President Sarcastically Proposes Renaming North America 'Mexican America' After Trump's Gulf of Mexico ProposalMexican President Claudia Sheinbaum responded sarcastically to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's proposal to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. Sheinbaum proposed renaming North America 'América Mexicana' or 'Mexican America', citing an 1814 document.
Read more »
Mexican President Retorts to Trump's Gulf of Mexico Rename with 'Mexican America' SuggestionMexican President Sheinbaum playfully suggested 'Mexican America' as a new name for the United States in response to Trump's plan to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America.
Read more »
Mexican President Sheinbaum Sarcastically Proposes Renaming North America 'Mexican America'Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum responded sarcastically to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's claims about the history of North America, proposing the renaming of the continent to 'América Mexicana' or 'Mexican America'. This exchange raises questions about Sheinbaum's diplomatic approach towards Trump's policies.
Read more »
Mexican president: Rename U.S. 'Mexican America'President Claudia Sheinbaum said the U.S. should be called 'Mexican America' after Donald Trump said 'Gulf of America' has 'a beautiful ring to it.'
Read more »
Mexican Cartels Drug Smuggling Tunnels Discovered by Drone OperationThree drug smuggling tunnels used by Mexican cartels have been discovered along the Arizona border thanks to a joint operation between U.S. and Mexican law enforcement utilizing drone technology.
Read more »