Feds Bust Mexican Mafia, Seize Drugs & Guns

0:00It's April 23rd. Welcome to California News Today, powered by AI, I'm Corey with the story. Federal agents just took down more than two dozen alleged Mexican mafia members and associates in a massive early morning sweep across Southern, California on Thursday. In total, 43 people face indictments for heavy charges like murder, kidnapping, extortion, running illegal gambling ops, and drug, trafficking. They grab 120 pounds of methamphetamine over 8 pounds of fentanyl, 25 firearms, and more than $30,000 in cash. One key leader locked up in state prison, allegedly ran the whole show using smuggled cell phones from June 2024 right through April, 2026. He directed street gangs to kidnap and beat folks while pushing fentanyl, meth, heroin, and cocaine onto the streets. The Mexican mafia kicked off in the 1950s inside a juvenile jail and ballooned into this powerhouse controlling prison-based crime networks across borders.

1:03From behind bars, they squeeze extortion money and dictate drug flows, hitting communities hard with violence and addiction. They also muscled into illegal gambling spots and strip malls and homes, shaking down owners for protection fees enforced by beatings or worse. Prosecutors even tied them to a murder at a gang-run motel in Anaheim. Initial court appearances kickoff this afternoon in federal courts down in Los Angeles and Orange counties, with the feds bowing to dismantle this, prison empire for good.