It was a bad day to be a gang member. A multi-agency task force launched a crackdown Tuesday on the Avenues gang, arresting 49 people as it served warrants in the Glassell Park area of Los Angeles and in three other counties.
The warrants implicate members and associates of the gang in such felonies as narcotics and gun trafficking, carjacking, home invasion robberies, witness intimidation and murder, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.
Authorities served warrants at 47 locations and arrested 49 people -- 44 who were named in the warrants, and five who were taken into custody for parole and drug violations, said Officer April Harding of the Los Angeles Police Department's Media Relations office.
Agencies involved in the crackdown along with the LAPD included the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement; the Los Angeles High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force; and the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, according to police.
At a command post in Glassell Park, LAPD Deputy Chief Sergio Diaz told KTLA5 that most of those named in the warrants had been arrested, and that the operation targeted locations in Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Kern and Merced counties.
“Our goal is to occupy this community, move these people out ... and support the law-abiding people that deserve to live in dignity here,” Diaz said.
Authorities scheduled a news conference for 11:30 a.m. at the Los Angeles Police Academy to discuss the arrests. A community meeting was scheduled for 6 p.m. at Washington Irving Middle School, 3010 Estara Ave., Diaz said.
