Federal authorities said they arrested 18 people Wednesday on charges related to selling illicit drugs, including fentanyl and methamphetamine, around MacArthur Park in Los Angeles. Federal prosecutors said the arrests came after raids across the area and in other locations in Southern California tied to alleged drug sales at the park.
In the operation, authorities seized 40 pounds (18 kilograms) of fentanyl from a single home, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Prosecutors said two of those arrested—a couple from South Los Angeles—were believed to be the main sources of the fentanyl and methamphetamine sold around the park, with the drugs reportedly stashed in a storefront and distributed to street-level dealers.
At a news conference announcing the arrests, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said, “We’re here today because California policy has failed.” He added, “MacArthur Park should be for families, should be for residents of Los Angeles, not for drug dealers and gangsters.”
Essayli announced the arrests with officials from the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Los Angeles Police Department, and he described the park’s drug problem as linked to what he said were failed California policies. He specifically pointed to programs that include handing out clean needles and Narcan, a medication used to treat opioid overdose.
Authorities said the raids targeted MacArthur Park, a densely populated immigrant neighborhood west of downtown LA. Federal officials have previously described the park and surrounding areas as part of heavily contested gang territory, and they said the park has drawn numerous homeless encampments and has been the site of open-air drug use in recent years.
A criminal complaint described Moreno-Lopez and Tarfur as one of the main sources of drugs distributed in the area, generally on behalf of the 18th Street Gang. The complaint said the couple allegedly hand-delivered narcotics to a storefront on the Alvarado corridor, a street described as the eastern border of the park where many drug transactions would take place.
The complaint said other defendants were surveilled and caught selling drugs to undercover federal agents. Authorities also said Moreno-Lopez and Tarfur had not been assigned attorneys in court yet and could not be reached for comment.
Federal officials said aerial video showed agents gathered outside a strip of businesses across from the park, with one agent using a chain saw to cut through a business wall. Essayli posted video on the social platform X showing LAPD officers assisting with the effort and a home being raided.
Officials said the operation began Tuesday night and included multiple phases of warrant service. Anthony Chrysanthis, the DEA’s special agent in charge in Los Angeles, said the operation involved more than 200 personnel, and Essayli said three warrants were executed in the morning at residences in other locations in Southern California, while six warrants were served at businesses authorities said were selling narcotics in MacArthur Park.
Chrysanthis said investigators have targeted the Sinaloa Cartel as the supplier for fentanyl and methamphetamine in the area. The defendants were set to appear in court Thursday, while Essayli’s office said seven others remained fugitives.
The announcement also followed recent city plans for improvements at the park, including capturing rainstorm runoff into the lake and adding landscaping, walking paths and other features.