Major police raid targets L.A.'s notorious Avenues gang

Hundreds of police officers and federal law enforcement agents launched a major assault on the Avenues gang this morning, hoping to deal a blow to an elusive group they say is responsible for some of Los Angeles' most notorious street crime.

Under the cover of darkness around 3 a.m., roughly 1,200 heavily armed officers from the Los Angeles Police Department, the Drug Enforcement Administration and several other agencies dispersed from a command post near the LAPD’s training academy in Elysian Park.

Warrants in hand, they descended on dozens of homes in search of 53 alleged members or associates of the Avenues gang wanted on an array of federal charges related to extensive drug dealing, unsolved murders and other crimes.

Forty-three suspects already are in custody on unrelated charges. The operation was aimed to bring new charges against 88 Avenues members or associates, a significant share of a gang that is believed to have about 400 members. 

Some suspects were sought elsewhere in the city, but the sweep focused on Glassell Park and other neighborhoods in the northeastern reaches of Los Angeles -- the center of Avenues territory since the gang first surfaced in the 1950s.

There were no reports of officers encountering armed resistance. San Bernardino sheriff's officers say they shot two aggressive dogs they encountered at one location.

It was not immediately clear how many of the suspects had been found at their homes and taken into custody. The names of the suspects and the crimes they were accused of also were not immediately known, pending the unsealing of the indictments.

The arrests culminated a yearlong investigation of the gang run by a unit of LAPD detectives that specializes in gang-related homicides and a DEA task force.

The Avenues came under scrutiny in the wake of the August 2008 slaying of Juan Abel Escalante, a Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy. Escalante, 27, was gunned down outside of his parents’ Cypress Park home early in the morning as he headed to work as a guard at the Men’s Central Jail.

LAPD detectives led the murder investigation into the killing because it occurred within city boundaries. Within days of the shooting, agents from the DEA task force, which had previously investigated the Avenues, came to the LAPD with information they had gathered that indicated members from the gang may have been responsible.

That tip led to the arrest in December of two Avenues members in connection with the murder. Months later, a third member was taken into custody, and charges were brought against a fourth, who remains a fugitive. In the course of investigating the Escalante killing, however, the LAPD detectives and DEA agents delved into the inner workings of the Avenues and began compiling evidence related to a host of other alleged crimes.

Some of the information was collected during interrogations of Avenues members and others from the neighborhood who had been arrested by a special team of 54 uniformed gang officers deployed in the area. Much of the incriminating information, however, came from the suspects themselves as DEA agents secured approval from federal judges for an array of wire taps that allowed them to listen in on gang members’ phone conversations.

"They could have just stuck with Escalante," said LAPD Capt. Kevin McClure, who oversees the detective unit. “They could have said, ‘We got what we came for,’ packed it up and moved on to something that would have been easier. This operation was not a result of me telling them they have to do this. It is a result of this unit saying, ‘There is more here, let’s keep going.’ ”

Over the course of the investigation, cases were built against Avenues members for their alleged roles in six other unsolved murders and four attempted murders, said a top LAPD gang detective involved in the operation. He requested that his name not be used because of concerns over retaliation by Avenues members.

The bulk of the charges are for extortion and other crimes that Avenues members and associates allegedly committed as part of the gang’s extensive drug trafficking in the area, police say. Most of the Avenues members included in the indictment are being charged under the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, which allows prosecutors to pursue more serious prison sentences. At a planning briefing last week with representatives from the agencies involved, there was little question as to what had kept the group motivated.

With the auditorium at LAPD headquarters filled with a few hundred officers, a recording was played of the phone call Escalante’s wife made to a 911 dispatcher after discovering him in the street. “If anyone has any doubt about the rationale or reason behind this operation, it was this,” a detective said.

At the meeting, officers reviewed the complicated logistics involved in a gang sweep of such a large magnitude. With more than a dozen targets located on one street alone, the routes each team of officers would take and the order of their deployment had to be painstakingly planned.

Officers were instructed to bring suspects back to the command post for processing wearing only clothes and a pair of shoes. Any jewelry, cellphones or other belongings would clog up what promised to be an already hectic assembly line of alleged criminals.  Staff from the state’s Child Protective Services department would be on hand to handle children found in any of the homes, officers were told.

The gang, named for the avenues that cross Figueroa Street,  has a long, ugly history dating back at least to the 1950s, when it was linked to many shootouts and killings. It is thought by some that the group’s origins can be traced back to some of the hundreds of families displaced from Chavez Ravine, now home to Dodger Stadium, and the Rose Hill areas.

The group’s insignia, which many members have tattooed on their bodies, is a skull with a bullet hole, wearing a fedora. Various cliques of the Avenues claim Highland Park and parts of Cypress Park, Glassell Park and Eagle Rock as their territory. It is linked closely to the Mexican Mafia prison gang, which demands that the Avenues and other Eastside gangs send up a share of the taxes they collect from low-level drug dealers and others selling goods on their turf.

Today’s sweep is hardly the first time law enforcement has taken on the Avenues. In 2002, the city attorney won an injunction against the gang, making it illegal for members to congregate throughout much of Highland Park, Glassell Park, Cypress Park and Eagle Rock. A few years later, federal prosecutors won hate-crime convictions against Avenues members for the killings of three black men between 1995 and 2000.

Government attorneys argued that the Avenues launched a campaign of violence to force black people out of the Highland Park area in the 1990s and targeted the men simply because of their race. In 2007, the city used a narcotics-abatement lawsuit to shut down the home of a family at the center of the Avenues' Drew Street clique.

At the time, then-City Atty. Rocky Delgadillo called the house the gang’s “mother ship.” In February of last year, the gang re-erupted into the city’s public consciousness when policy say Drew Street members  gunned down a man as he stood on a curb holding his 2-year-old granddaughter’s hand.

They brazenly took on police in a running gun battle, firing at officers with an AK-47 assault rifle in broad daylight. Most recently, in June 2008, the DEA task force that came to LAPD detectives with information on the Escalante killing conducted a similar, but smaller, operation to the one carried out today. That investigation named 70 defendants.

At the time, LAPD officials assured residents of the area that they would work to keep the gang from reclaiming control of the neighborhoods. Drug activity in the area has slowed considerably in recent months, the detective said, but considering the size of today’s operation, the gang clearly has maintained a commanding presence in the area.

"They’ve owned that community for a long, long time," the detective said. "Only time will tell for sure, but I think this will be a blow that will finally make a lasting impact."

-- Joel Rubin

Photo: Several men suspected of being members or associates of the Avenues gang are held in a booking area after being arrested during a predawn raid. Credit: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times

Comments

[windu]

"With the auditorium at LAPD headquarters filled with a few hundred officers, a recording was played of the phone call Escalante’s hysterical wife made to a 911 dispatcher after discovering him in the street. “If anyone has any doubt about the rationale or reason behind this operation, it was this,” a detective said."

That statement really infuriates me. Here we finally have police showing the will to do something about a gang. An army of 1200 officers. Finally. But why now? Because one of their own was killed. Apparently the suffering and sorrow of the residents of Los Angeles neighborhoods that have been terrorized by gangs for decades don't warrant this type of response. See, here's proof that it's a lack of will to stop gangs that allows them to thrive. Are we not saved?

[jayteereal]

This article is the very reason I support my and every Police and Law enforcement departments, because without them we would never get rid of the evil low-life cowards that roam our streets killing our kids, our families, and our friends. I really feel good knowing that this is what my tax dollars pay for; Law Enforcement. Great Job Guys!!, and Thank You : )

[big picture]

Good job LAPD. Thank you for going after these guys.

[Sandra]

It's about time someone did something about the Avenues. They were a problem many years ago when I worked the Gang Unit for the Probation Department. Too bad an officer had to die before anyone gained the nerve to try to stop them.

[I'm ready]

Life sentences and/or permanent deportation.

[joe s]

good work, keep it up, be safe!
hey gang bangers keep the gang drop the bang!
raise money by doing car washes and BBCUEs, the violence is a waste of time!,AND A WASTE OF LIFE!

[Ruby Jackson]

LAPD Capt. Kevin McClure claims that "This operation was not a result of me telling them they have to do this. It is a result of this unit saying, ‘There is more here, let’s keep going.’ ”

Why did it take the death of officer Escalante to motivate these detectives when this gang has such a long history of violence?

[Nick]

Go my local law enforcement. Semper Fi!

[tango down]

GREAT work fellas! AAAAHHHHOOOOO!

[Gloria]

As a Northeast resident, I am thankful that the police have stayed on this investigation. This gang is a scourge on Northeast and prevents the community from reaching its potential as a terrific area in which to live. Let's continue the push to eradicate this mess from the community.

[Paco]

Through 35 years, I have watched these dudes evolve from street hoods whose antics were relegated to spray painted walls, pot sales with the occasional beat down of each other to become ruthless "foreign" killers. What percentage of the estimated 400 members of Los Avenidas do you believe to be illegal immigrants from Mexico? If you look at previous indictments it's easy to assess at least 30 percent if not more. The dudes who "brazenly" opened fire on officers were here illegally and one the son of a woman (Deleon) who was deported more than once.

So you tell me liberals of LA, what's the solution?

[Big Jim Slade]

So why hasn't this been done regularly over the last 50 years? An international disgrace to let this get out of hand for so long...

Why not have LAPD and the Fed put it on their schedule as a recurring item every three months for the next twenty years?

At some point perhaps our local Mexican population may start paying attention in school and get jobs instead of continuing their 50% high school drop out rate.

Talk about a non-functioning culture...

[Mr.G...]

That is NOT going to have any affect...
When will they learn...
Gangs are NOT going away,get used to it...
You can lock them up all day long and there will ALWAYS be another one there to take their place...

[Emobb]

Gangs are going to be slowed down, but just like weeds, theyll grow again and police will stay in business. As long as there is poverty, racism, and corruption, there will always be gangs.

[DIANA DANIELS]

I'M GLAD SOMETHING IS FINALLY BEING DONE. MY GRANDSON WAS A STUDENT AT IRVING AND WAS THREATENED ON A DAILY BASIS BY ONE OF THE NEW UP AND COMING AVENUES GANG MEMBER. THE BOY WAS ON HOUSE ARREST AND ALLOWED TO GO TO SCHOOL WITH THE OTHER KIDS AND USED HIS "AVENUE GANG STATUS" TO INTIMIDATE OTHER STUDENTS. MY GRANDSON AT AGE 15 HAD TO BE SENT AWAY FOR HIS OWN SAFETY. I HOPE THIS "KID" AND HIS FAMILY WERE PART OF TODAYS BUST. FINALLY!!!! THANK YOU

[JM]

Really want to get rid of these gangs? Get into the schools, fund them properly, provide them with the best computers, the best teachers, provide after school day care, arts programs, science programs, sports programs, vocational programs, and that's how you'll stop the gangs. Sound expensive? Well think of all the money we'll save when we need less gang task forces and less prisons.

[Kate]

I disagree with those who conclude from this article that the police only did it because one of their own died. What I get from the fact that the deputy's wife's 911 call was played: they played something that showed a personal, tragic loss, a senseless loss. It could have been anyone, but this investigation started when that murder took place.

What I get from the officer saying that he didn't have to spur his unit on to further work, because they knew "there was more here," is again not a spur to action due to a deputy being shot, but due to the facts stated preceding this statement, in this very article: the DEA Task Force brought the LAPD more information, investigations were leading to more than a murder case--and the LAPD pursued it.

You can't even say they only pursued this because one of their own was killed due to other facts in the article: you can see that other officers have been murdered at other times, as well as private citizens, including the grandfather mentioned here.

Months-long and years-long cases don't come about to avenge an officer's death. What's being described here is real police work.

[Julie Peña]

It has been hard work and dedication by many Officers of LAPD!

[MIKE]

GOOD JOB LAPD.

GOD BLESS YOU!!

MIKE FROM GLENDALE

[Angela]

Go LAPD!! Has William Bratton left yet? Don't go! He's the best thing ever. Stay safe and please continue to help rid our beautiful neighborhoods of these local terrorists. As a community member and teacher who sees the impact that these bullies have on our little kids - I thank you for doing such a difficult job of dealing with people who have never had anyone hold them accountable.

[Farbie]

I will have to agree with the comments that refer to the fact that an OFFICER HAD TO BE KILLED BEFORE THE POLICE GOT THE NERVE TO FIGHT ANY GANG VOILENCE ON A GRAND SCALE. It is not enough for neighborhoods to take the streets back themselves, although there are several that have done a great job. Neighborhoods are very small compared to the police force and the anti gang units have not done a damn thing it seems.
The cops need to back up neighborhoods in order to keep these gangs from re-organizing, because you know that the gangs will continue to gather new members every day with the downturned economy there are less programs to keep kids occupied after school so they do not fall prey to the gangs and ruin their chances of becoming a productive adult.

[DR]

Getting to the root of the gang problem is the only lasting way to effectively these gangs existance. LAPD good work on continuling in your attempts to dismantle what has been a scourge on the communities of LA.
I am now in my fiftys and remember when you could just about travel anywhere in the city without much cause for concerns. that day is long gone and sadly, many people will never know what thats like.
Dismantle the hierarchy that inbeds itself into this impressionable young vatos (ie La Eme) instead of glamorizing them will go a long way to returning back to any sembalence of decency in the city of LA.

[CK]

There's one thing I don't understand:

"Warrants in hand, they descended on dozens of homes in search of 53 alleged members or associates...."

BUT, in the very next paragraph,

"Forty-three suspects already are in custody on unrelated charges"

At first I thought the article was saying the police caught 43 of the 53 but, it says they were already in custody. So they sent out 1200 police to look for 53 people, 43 of whom were already accounted for (in essence 10 people)?

[Sean]

Woke up to a loud distant banging sound at 4am followed by helicopters. Wonder where in Los Feliz they were hitting.

[Alex]

I am grateful to the LAPD for reacting; I can view by the comments that many believe this raid was prompted only after one of their own was killed but in reality Escalante was “one” of the community BEFORE he ever became one of “them” as he grew up in Cypress Park and probably attended school in the same neighborhood where he was gunned down. I believe that only the community can rise up and prompt change, enough with witnessing a crime and hiding behind FEAR if you see something report it otherwise you have turned your home to the gang members that terrorized your community. Bravo! It’s about time but there is still much work ahead for all of us…