Seven reputed Montebello-area gang members have been arrested on suspicion of involvement in at least half a dozen killings stemming from ongoing rivalries over drugs and turf, authorities said Wednesday.
The arrests made by Montebello police and federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agents, coupled with several dozen federal and state indictments, are part of a bid to clear a backlog of unsolved gang homicides.
The operation targeted Southside Montebello, a gang rooted in the community for half a century.
Thirty-eight alleged gang members were facing criminal counts — 33 of them were already in custody Wednesday — linked to state criminal filings and a series of federal grand jury indictments unsealed Wednesday.
Those in custody face a laundry list of federal and state charges, including murder, attempted murder, conspiracy, witness intimidation, extortion, and assorted weapons and drug charges.
The arrests stem from an effort by Montebello police Chief Kevin McClure to clear several dozen "cold case" gang-related homicides. He said the push to put area gang members behind bars would continue.
"This operation took a large section of the hierarchy of the Southside Montebello gang out of operation," McClure said. "You can expect we will continue to investigate several dozen unsolved murders that we believe can be attributed to Montebello-area gangs."
As part of the investigation, authorities seized more than 600 grams of methamphetamine and 25 weapons, including several fully automatic assault weapons. An anti-tank rocket launcher seized was not operational, but sources said it could have been used as a makeshift explosive device.
Police said most of the slayings connected to the operation Wednesday date from 2007 and involve a total of six victims in crimes carried out primarily by Southside Montebello gang members.
At a news conference in Montebello, U.S. Atty. Andre Birotte Jr. said that the slayings involved what he described as a "killer squad" within the Southside Montebello gang, which sought to eliminate any enemies of the gang — whether they were horning in on drug operations or disrespecting members.
Jimmy Valenzuela, 30, was described as one of the main suspects and an original member of the "killer squad." Valenzuela, who lives in Montebello, was arrested in June on suspicion of committing two gang-related slayings.
In one of those crimes, Joe Alvarado, 22, was shot multiple times while sitting in his car on the afternoon of Dec. 22, 2007, in the 800 block of Mines Avenue in Montebello.
Detectives said they also have evidence linking Valenzuela to the killing of Jimmy Jimenez, 29, who was shot to death on July 24, 2010, in the 300 block of West Lohart Avenue in Montebello.
Read More... http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-0516-montebello-arrests-20130516,0,1199199.story
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