The Sheriff's Blogger

FORMER BELL CITY MANAGER SENTENCED FOR DRIVING WITH .28 BLOOD ALCOHOL LEVEL AND CRASHING INTO NEIGHBOR'S MAILBOX

August 25, 2010

Orange County District Attorney's Office

WESTMINSTER - A former Bell city manager was convicted today of driving under the influence of alcohol with a .28 blood alcohol level and crashing into his neighbor's mailbox. Robert Adrian Rizzo, 56, Huntington Beach, pleaded guilty to a court offer to one misdemeanor count each of driving under the influence of alcohol and driving with a blood alcohol level of .08 percent or more with a sentencing enhancement for having a blood alcohol level of .20 percent or more. He was sentenced to complete a 9-month first-offender alcohol awareness program and 10 days of community service.

At approximately 10:00 p.m. on March 6, 2010, then-Bell City Manager Rizzo was driving to his Huntington Beach home while under the influence of alcohol. Rizzo drove into his neighborhood through an alleyway, unintentionally passed his home, and crashed into his neighbor's mailbox while attempting to enter his driveway. Witnesses called 911.

When contacted at the scene by Huntington Beach Police Department officers, Rizzo displayed objective signs of intoxication including blood shot and watery eyes, slurred speech, unstable balance, and emitted a strong odor of alcohol on his breath. Rizzo's balance was so unsteady that officers stopped him from completing his field sobriety tests for his safety. Rizzo had a blood alcohol level of .28 percent, over three times the legal limit.

Deputy District Attorney Brock Zimmon of the Special Prosecutions Unit prosecuted this case.

41 MEMBERS AND ASSOCIATES OF PUEBLO BISHOPS CHARGED IN FEDERAL RACKETEERING INDICTMENT THAT ALLEGES MURDERS, ROBBERIES AND WIDESPREAD DRUG SALES IN BID TO CONTROL SOUTH L.A. COMMUNITY

US Department of Justice

LOS ANGELES – More than 1,000 FBI agents and LAPD officers executed arrest warrants and search warrants this morning after a two-year investigation into the Pueblo Bishops Bloods, a street gang that controls the Pueblo del Rio housing project in South Los Angeles. Authorities today arrested 19 defendants who are named in a sweeping racketeering indictment that was returned last week by a federal grand jury. Additionally, ten people were taken into custody on various state offenses. Several defendants named in the indictment were already in custody on unrelated charges.

The investigation into the Pueblo Bishops was called Operation “Family Ties” because many of the targets, in addition to residing at Pueblo del Rio, are united by family ties. Today’s takedown was announced by United States Attorney André Birotte Jr.; Steven Martinez, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI in Los Angeles; and Charlie Beck, Chief of the Los Angeles Police Department.

According to the 88-page racketeering indictment that was unsealed this morning, the Pueblo Bishops Bloods operated as a criminal enterprise, using violence and intimidation to control the Pueblo del Rio housing project. The indictment alleges that members of the Pueblo Bishops functioned as an organization with the goals of enriching members of the gang through narcotics trafficking and armed robberies, committing acts of violence to protect and expand the criminal operation, and enhancing control over Pueblo de Rio through intimidation and acts of violence against residents and members of rival gang.

“The federal racketeering indictment and today’s law enforcement operation strikes at the gang’s leadership and will drastically limit the gang’s ability to conduct

business,” said United States Attorney André Birotte Jr. “The only way to effectively fight the gang problem that plagues too many neighborhoods is for local, state and federal authorities to join together to combat the threat. This action against this dangerous gang will improve life for the residents of the Pueblo del Rio housing development.”

The federal racketeering indictment names 41 defendants, many of who would face potential life sentences if they are convicted of the various charges contained in the indictment.

Formed in the 1970s, the Pueblo Bishops derives its name from the Pueblo del Rio housing project, which is near East 55th and South Alameda streets in South Los Angeles. The Pueblo Bishops gang, which is believed to have approximately 300 active members or associates, allegedly maintains strict control of Pueblo del Rio by intimidating and threatening residents, confronting law enforcement officers who patrol the area, and attacking rivals by engaging in shootings, beatings, murders and attempted murders, according to the indictment.

The gang was formed to protect its members from other gangs, according to the indictment, which alleges that the enterprise has grown into a violent and profitable criminal enterprise that conducts annual meetings and enforces a strict set of rules.

Steven Martinez, the FBI Assistant Director in Charge, said, “The use of federal racketeering statutes to address the Pueblo Bishops’ stranglehold on the law-abiding citizens of the Pueblo del Rio housing project exemplifies the government’s commitment to addressing the gang violence that paralyzes American communities. The FBI and our partners in this investigation are optimistic that this operation will deal a significant blow to the organization’s money-making enterprise and associated violence victimizing innocent citizens in south Los Angeles.”

The defendants named in the federal indictment face various charges, including conspiracy to engage in racketeering activity; violent crimes in aid of racketeering; conspiracy to distribute cocaine, crack cocaine, heroin and marijuana; use and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime; and distribution and manufacturing of narcotics near schools, playgrounds and public housing facilities. The indictment specifically alleges a wide assortment of overt acts committed since 1999 in furtherance of the racketeering conspiracy, including numerous narcotics transactions, attacks on police officers, armed robberies, firearms sales, drive-by shootings, assaults with a deadly weapon, attempted murder and murder.

Chief Charlie Beck of the Los Angeles Police Department stated, “We are sending a message to all gangs that if you continue on this path, you will eventually be caught."

According to the indictment, older members of the gang, known as “Original Gangstas,” or “OGs,” impose mandates on the younger members of the gang, who are called “Younger Gangstas” or “YGs.” OGs presided over meetings to discuss the gang’s business and enlisted YGs to violently guard the gang’s territory, retaliate against rival gangs and commit crimes in furtherance of the criminal enterprise. The indictment alleges that members would commit murder and conspire to commit murder in order to enhance the violent reputation of the gang.

Those charged in the federal indictment are:

Bailey, Brett, 23, of Los Angeles

Bougerious, Rodney, 21, in custody on unrelated charges

Bullock, Deon, 21, of Los Angeles

Carter, Cedric, 39, of Los Angeles

Daniels, Deon Calvin, 38, of Los Angeles

Davis, Jason Franklin, 24, in custody on unrelated charges

Dent, Darrin, 45, of Los Angeles

Eleby, Kevin, 46, of Los Angeles

Epps, Tina Mae, 52, of Los Angeles

Espinoza, Luis, 21, of Los Angeles

Evans, Leo Rickey, 35, in custody on unrelated charges

Gabourel, Anthony D., 21, in custody on unrelated charges

Gillard, Phillip, 36, of Los Angeles

Gray, JK, 32, in custody on unrelated charges

Hansford, Jason Gerrard, 27, in custody on unrelated charges

Hardiman, Jermaine, 29, of Los Angeles

Henderson, Lee, 35, of Los Angeles

Hill, Anthony, 48, of Los Angeles

Hood, Keymont, 33, of Los Angeles

Howard, Bruce, 43, of Los Angeles

Kensey, Troy, 45, in custody on unrelated charges

Leon, Jose Alberto, 19, of Los Angeles

Vargas-Leon, Josefina, 39, of Los Angeles

Littleton, Lavert, 42, of Los Angeles

McGruder, Lynn, 39, of Los Angeles

Monson, Robbionta, 26, in custody on unrelated charges

Moore, Justin, 26, of Los Angeles

Munoz, Carlos Ivan, 25, in custody on unrelated charges

Nixon, Herman, 49, of Los Angeles

Patterson, Stephen, 28, of Los Angeles

Portillo, Natalie, 19, of Los Angeles

Portillo, Jose, 21, of Los Angeles

Reed, William Davis, 19, in custody on unrelated charges

Sexton, Derrick Ray, 37, in custody on unrelated charges

Terrell, John Jamar, 38, of Los Angeles

White, Dawayne, 22, of Los Angeles

White, Gary, 45, in custody on unrelated charges

Williams, Nicole, 25, of Los Angeles

Williams, Steven, 25, of Los Angeles

Wooten, Lesco, 46, of Los Angeles

Young, Rondale, 21, in custody on unrelated charges

Those arrested today in the federal case will be arraigned today in United States District Court in downtown Los Angeles.

Ten federal defendants are fugitives and are actively being sought by law enforcement.

Twelve additional members or associates of the Pueblo Bishops were charged with state narcotics violations. They are:

Curry, Ike, 62, of Los Angeles

Dent, Evalina, 27, of Los Angeles

Gibson, Andre, 36, of Los Angeles

Hill, Antuan, 42, of Los Angeles

Hill, Trevon, 25, in custody on unrelated charges

Johnson, Prentiss, 34, of Los Angeles

Kelley, Tyrone, 42, of Los Angeles

Leon, Donte, 29, of Los Angeles

Means Jr., Austin, 29, of Los Angeles

Ogilvie, Toion, 23, in custody on unrelated charges

Powell, Delano, 46 of Los Angeles

Taylor, Rocky, 37, in custody on unrelated charges

In addition, one individual was arrested for violating parole, listed as follows.

Mabry, Alvin, 35, of Los Angeles

This investigation was conducted by agents and officers with the FBI and the LAPD. Considerable assistance was provided during this investigation and in today’s operation by several additional agencies, including the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development – Office of Inspector General; the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office; the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation – Office of Correctional Safety; the Los Angeles County Department of Child and Family Services; and the Los Angeles County Probation

Department. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department also provided assistance during today’s operation.

The investigation into the Pueblo Bishops is a result of a long-standing partnership between the FBI and the Los Angeles Police Department, a relationship that is maintained through the FBI’s Task Force on Violent Crime in the City of Los Angeles. This task force is one of dozens of such partnerships throughout the United States, known as Safe Streets Task Forces, funded for the purpose of assisting local police in identifying and addressing violent crime in America.

An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in court.

Brown Seeks $34 Million From TV's Tax Lady Roni Deutch For Victimizing Thousands Who Sought Her Aid in Dealing With the IRS

Attorney General's Office

SACRAMENTO - Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. today filed a $34 million lawsuit against television's "Tax Lady Roni Deutch" for orchestrating a "heartless scheme" that swindled thousands of people facing serious and expensive tax collection problems with the IRS.

"Tax Lady Roni Deutch is engaged in a heartless scheme that swindled people with tax problems," Brown said. "She promises to significantly reduce their IRS tax debts, but instead preys on their vulnerability, taking large up-front payments but providing little or no help in lowering their tax bills."

Deutch manufactures credibility by boasting that her tax resolution law firm, which has annual revenues of at least $25 million, is the largest of its kind in the nation. She spends $3 million a year on advertising, much of it on late-night cable TV, and frequently offers tax advice on NBC's Today Show, CNN, and CNBC.

Desperate debtors turn to Deutch based on her misleading ads that feature fictional testimonials claiming she secured large reductions in the featured clients' federal tax debts.

For example, her ad entitled "It's Your Turn" features three clients whom Deutch claims to have "saved" from having to pay thousands of dollars to the IRS. In fact, those clients still owe the IRS the full amount of their taxes, plus interest and penalties.

When potential clients call Deutch's boiler room, sales agents employ high-pressure sales tactics plus a series of misrepresentations and false promises to persuade them to retain her firm. The sales agents claim Deutch's success rate in dealing with the IRS is as high as 99 percent. But the percentage of clients whose tax bills Deutch actually reduces is a mere 10 percent.

Rather than cut clients' debts, Deutch often escalates them. She places clients in an endless loop of requests for duplicate documents that increases her fees and, due to further delays in payments to the IRS, increases clients' IRS fines and penalties.

One woman from Pico Rivera, who owed the IRS $13,000, turned to Deutch after seeing a TV ad. She paid Deutch a $1,900 retainer, but by the time the Deutch firm ended its representation, she owed the IRS hundreds of dollars more in interest and penalties, and the IRS had placed a levy against her Social Security benefits. Despite failing to take any effective action on her behalf, Deutch refused to refund the woman's retainer by falsely billing her for time the firm did not spend on her case. Deutch regularly uses false billing statements to deny her clients' refund requests.

Hundreds of clients have filed complaints with the Attorney General and other government agencies, describing Deutch's failure to reduce their IRS debts as she advertised and her refusal to refund retainers of as much as $4,700.

Brown's lawsuit says thousands of consumers in California and around the country have fallen victim to Deutch's unlawful scam, losing millions of dollars that could have been used to pay their IRS tax liabilities. The lawsuit charges that Deutch operates a deceptive tax resolution scheme that employs "a bevy of false promises and misrepresentations."

Brown's action seeks to permanently prevent Deutch from engaging in such unfair business practices and false advertising, and force her to pay victims restitution of at least $33.9 million plus civil penalties.

Brown's lawsuit follows the consumer alert he issued on March 30, 2010, warning consumers to be wary about tax debt scams. It is also one of a series of actions he has taken to protect consumers who suffered during the financial crisis and resulting economic downturn, including his 2008 lawsuit against Countrywide Home Loans that resulted in an $8.68 billion settlement, as well as recent enforcement actions against scams in the foreclosure consultant, loan modification, and property tax reassessment industries.

OFF-DUTY FIRE DEPARTMENT ARSON INVESTIGATOR CHARGED WITH BRANDISHING GUN AT WOMAN IN BAR

August 23, 2010

Orange County District Attorney's Office

WESTMINSTER - An off-duty arson investigator with the Hermosa Beach Fire Department has been charged with brandishing a firearm at a woman sitting next to him in a bar in Sunset Beach. Darryl Lee Powers, 49, La Palma, was charged Thursday, Aug. 19, 2010, with one misdemeanor count of brandishing a firearm capable of being concealed upon a person in a public place. If convicted, he faces a sentence ranging from 90 days up to one year in jail. Powers is scheduled to be arraigned Sept. 24, 2010, at the West Justice Center in Westminster. The time and Department are to be determined.

At approximately 9:15 p.m. on July 7, 2010, Powers is accused of being at Turc's Bar in Sunset Beach having drinks with his cousin. The defendant is accused of taking out a knife and stabbing it into the bar in front of him. Victim Kimberly D., who did not know the defendant, was sitting next to him at the bar.

A bartender took the knife and told the defendant that he could not have a knife at the bar. When the bartender walked away, Powers is accused of taking a firearm from his pocket and putting in on the bar with the barrel pointing at Kimberly D. The frightened victim asked Powers to put the firearm away, but he is accused of leaving it on the bar.

The victim told the bartender, who contacted the Orange County Sheriff's Department (OCSD). Powers was contacted by OCSD as he left the bar and released at the scene pending further investigation.

Senior Deputy District Attorney Rebecca Olivieri of the Special Prosecutions Unit is prosecuting this case.

LAKE FOREST KARATE INSTRUCTOR SENTENCED TO JAIL FOR INDECENT EXPOSURE NEAR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

August 20, 2010

Orange County District Attorney's Office

NEWPORT BEACH - A Lake Forest karate instructor was sentenced today to 120 days in jail, three years of formal probation, and sex offender registration for exposing his penis to a mother and her baby near an elementary school. Amonullah Sakhi, 26, Lake Forest, pleaded guilty to a court offer to one misdemeanor count of indecent exposure.

At approximately 12:00 p.m., on Sept. 11, 2009, Sakhi, who lived less than a mile from the Olivewood Elementary School in Lake Forest, was standing in the doorway of his home. A woman caring her baby was walking from her house to the elementary school to visit her daughter for lunch, and as she passed his house Sakhi pulled down his jogging pants and started to masturbate.

Once the mother arrived at the school, she told a volunteer community liaison what had happened. On Oct. 7, 2009, Orange County Sheriff's Department deputies arrested Sakhi at his karate studio.

Deputy District Attorney Anna McIntire prosecuted this case.

Los Angeles CBP, ICE and LAPD Joint Operation yields $6.2 Million in Counterfeit Jeans

US Customs and Border Protection

LOS ANGELES— U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Officers at the Los Angeles/Long Beach Seaport discovered merchandise which led to a joint operation between Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Agents and Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) Detectives who on August 17, seized counterfeit “True Religion” jeans with a manufacturer’s suggested retail value of more than $6.2 million.

  

“By partnering with industry and other government agencies such as ICE and LAPD, all enforcement efforts are mutually enhanced in the combat of cross-border trade in counterfeit and pirated goods.  Joint cooperation in such working relationships accomplishes large success,” said Carlos Martel, CBP Acting Director of Field Operations in Los Angeles.

  

The theft of intellectual property and the trade in counterfeit and pirated goods threatens America’s innovation based economy, the competitiveness of our businesses, the livelihoods of U.S. workers, and, in some cases, national security and the health and safety of our consumers.

  

CBP’s strategic approach to this enforcement is multi-layered and includes seizing fake goods at our borders, pushing the border outward through audits of infringing importers and cooperation with our international trading partners, and partnering with industry and other government agencies to enhance these efforts.  

CBP is on the frontline of intellectual property rights (IPR) enforcement.  Stopping the flow of fake goods is one of CBP’s priority trade issues.

MAN ARRESTED AFTER EJACULATING TWO TIMES INTO FEMALE CO-WORKER'S WATER BOTTLE WHILE AT WORK

August 17, 2010

Orange County District Attorney's Office

SANTA ANA - A man was arrested today on charges of ejaculating twice into a female co-worker's water bottle on her office desk.

 Michael Kevin Lallana, 31, Fullerton, is charged with two misdemeanor counts each of releasing an offensive material in a public place and assault, with sentencing allegations for committing a crime for sexual gratification. If convicted, he faces a sentence ranging from a minimum of three months to a maximum of three years in jail with mandatory sex offender registration. The People requested Lallana be held on $10,000 bail. The defendant is out of custody on $500 bond and is scheduled to be arraigned September 14, 2010, at 8:30 a.m. in Department C-46, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana.

In 2005, Lallana is accused of meeting a co-worker, in her twenties, Jane Doe, while working at Northwestern Mutual Mortgage Company in Newport Beach. On Jan. 14, 2010, Lallana is accused of assaulting Jane Doe by entering the victim's office and depositing his ejaculation into a water bottle that was on her desk. The defendant is accused of leaving the semen-filled water bottle on the victim's desk which Jane Doe later drank upon returning to her office. The victim, unaware of the bottle's contents, drank the water the contaminated water. She threw it away after feeling sickened and irritated.

Approximately three months later, Jane Doe and six other employees, including the defendant, were transferred to the Northwestern Mutual Mortgage Company's Orange branch. On April 9, 2010, Lallana is accused of assaulting Jane Doe by depositing his ejaculation into a water bottle that the victim left on her desk. The defendant is accused of leaving the contaminated bottle on Jane Doe's desk and returning to his office. The victim later returned to her office and drank from the semen-filled water bottle. She was sickened and irritated. She sent it to a private lab to be tested.

In June 2010, Jane Doe was contacted by the private lab who confirmed that the water bottle contained semen. The victim reported the incidents to the Orange Police Department (OPD). In early July, following further investigation by the OPD and Orange County Crime Lab, the defendant was linked through DNA to the crimes. Lallana was arrested early this morning outside his Fullerton home by OPD.

Deputy District Attorney Bobby Taghavi is prosecuting this case.

JUSTICE DEPARTMENT SUES TO STOP TWO LOS ANGELES RESIDENTS FROM PROMOTING ALLEGEDLY BOGUS TRUSTS

Department of Justice

Case Alleges They Encourage Taxpayers to Form Trusts as a Means of Tax Evasion

    LOS ANGELES – The United States has sued two Brentwood residents who allegedly promoted the formation and operation of “common-law” trusts for the purpose of tax avoidance, and the Justice Department is asking a federal judge to issue an order that will prevent the pair from further promoting the fraudulent scheme.

    According to the government’s complaint, which was filed Friday in United States District Court, Gwenn Wycoff, 65, and Frank Ozak, 70, promoted the creation of common-law trusts. Promoting the scheme through personal appearances, a website (http://www.passingbucks.com/) and self-published books called “The Art of Passing the Buck,” Wycoff and Ozak urged taxpayers to place their personal assets and businesses into a variety of related trusts to create the impression that they no longer owned the assets. Thereafter, the complaint alleges, the trusts were ostensibly run by independent trustees – often Ozak and Wycoff – when, in fact, the customers continued to exercise control over the assets they had placed into the trusts.

    A major goal in creating the trusts, the complaint alleges, was to make it appear as if the taxpayers had little to no income, thereby evading the payment of federal income taxes. The complaint alleges that Wycoff and Ozak had their customers sign an “Oath of Privacy,” which threatened customers with penalties of up to $100,000 if they disclosed to the government facts revealing the illegality of the trusts.

    The government’s lawsuit contends that the trusts created with the assistance of Wycoff and Ozak (including one they created for themselves) either are sham entities or led to filing of fraudulent income tax returns. The total amount of tax deficiencies assessed by the government to date in just four cases involving Wycoff and Ozak-created trusts is more than $1.1 million.

    In the past decade, Justice Department attorneys have obtained more than 470 injunctions to stop tax fraud promoters and tax return preparers. Information about these cases is available at http://www.justice.gov/tax/taxpress2010.htm.

INDICTMENTS TARGET ARM OF PASADENA STREET GANG ALLEGEDLY SELLING CRACK COCAINE IN ANTELOPE VALLEY

Department of Justice

    A task force of federal and local law enforcement officers this morning arrested 34 members and associates of a Pasadena-based street gang, 11 of whom are charged in federal indictments with trafficking crack cocaine in the Antelope Valley.

    The 11 federal arrests are the result of two indictments returned last Wednesday by a federal grand jury in Los Angeles. The indictments name a total of 23 defendants linked to the Pasadena Denver Lane Bloods (PDL), which has branched out into the Antelope Valley in recent years. In addition to the 11 federal defendants arrested this morning, five of the federal defendants were previously taken into custody and 23 people were arrested on various state offenses and parole violations. Authorities continue to search for six defendants named in the federal indictments. The final defendant was not arrested because she is in the hospital.

    The investigation began last year after a PDL member shot and wounded Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy Giovanni Lampigano during a July 12, 2009 incident in Palmdale. The investigation was conducted by officers with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department-Operation Safe Streets Bureau and law enforcement personnel associated with the High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force, which is a program operated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and is designed to enhance and coordinate efforts among local, state and federal law enforcement agencies. As a result of the investigation, law enforcement seized approximately two pounds of crack cocaine and 114 grams of powder cocaine.

    “Today’s arrests are an example of what can be achieved through the HIDTA task force program and DEA’s Mobile Enforcement Team, by combining federal, state and local resources to have the greatest impact within our communities – in this case, by taking violent PDL gang members, who were supporting their gang activities through the sale of crack cocaine, off the streets of the Antelope Valley,” said Timothy J. Landrum, DEA Special Agent in Charge.

Claude Arnold, Special Agent in Charge for ICE Homeland Security Investigations in Los Angeles, stated: “This enforcement action has dealt a serious blow to one of the most dangerous and aggressive criminal street gangs operating in the Antelope Valley. As a result of our collective efforts, we’ve taken several leaders of this organization off of the street and shutdown a lucrative and potentially lethal drug trafficking scheme. In conjunction with our ongoing anti-gang initiative Operation Community Shield, ICE will continue to work closely with its federal and local law enforcement partners to attack and dismantle the street gangs that are spreading violence and crime in our communities.”

    The two federal indictments allege conspiracies to traffick in crack cocaine, as well as various specific narcotics and firearms offenses. The defendants named in the indictments are:

Byron McGee, 28, of Palmdale, who was already in custody;
Darnell St. Clair, 28, of Lancaster, who was already in custody;
Ivan McGee, 24, of Lancaster, who was already in custody;
David Leon Dixon Jr., 42, of Lancaster, who is a fugitive;
Derrick Powell, 24, of Lancaster, who was already in custody;
Travon Peacock, 24, of Quartz Hill, who was arrested this morning;
Joseph Senegal, 27, of Palmdale, who was already in custody;
Kendrick Smith, 26, of Palmdale, who is a fugitive;
Jermaine Thomas, 23, of Lancaster, who was arrested this morning;
Howard Vaughn, 39, of Palmdale, who was arrested this morning;
Charissa Brown, 36, of Lancaster, who is in the hospital;
James Logan, 47, of Lancaster, who is a fugitive;
Angelo Sanders, 44, of Lakeview Terrace, who is a fugitive;
Dwayne Bland, 26, of Palmdale, who was arrested this morning;
Wahid Shabazz, 54, of Lancaster, who was arrested this morning;
Jayvon Thomas, 31, of Palmdale, who was arrested this morning;
Michael Bridges, 28, of Palmdale, who is a fugitive;
Bernard Taylor, 21, of Palmdale, who is a fugitive;
Sheila Logan, 47, of Lancaster, who was arrested this morning;
Iwana Cruse, 33, of Lancaster, who was arrested this morning;
Milove Cabrera, 21, of Palmdale, who was arrested this morning;
Antrone Springfield, 35, of Lancaster, who was arrested this morning; and
Clarence Weathers, 41, of Palmdale, who was arrested this morning.

The federal defendants taken into custody today are expected to be arraigned on the indictment this afternoon in United States District Court in Los Angeles.

    Each of the 23 defendants in the federal cases would face mandatory minimum sentences of 10 years in federal prison if they are convicted of conspiring to distribute crack cocaine.

    An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in court.

    Dejon Ray King, the PDL member who shot Deputy Lampigano, was convicted in June in state court of attempted murder on a peace officer. King was subsequently sentenced to 38 years to life.

    The HIDTA Task Force that conducted this investigation is made up of law enforcement personnel from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Drug Enforcement Administration, IRS-Criminal Investigation, and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. DEA’s Mobile Enforcement Team, or MET, joined forces with the HIDTA Task Force during today’s operation.

Brown Expands Bell Probe and Establishes Hotline for Voting Fraud Complaints

August 9 California Attorney General's Office LOS ANGELES -- Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. subpoenaed personal financial records of present and former officials involved in the City of Bell salary scandal today and ordered them to appear for depositions to be taken under oath within two weeks.

Brown also announced that his office has set up a toll-free telephone hotline for citizens to report allegations of possible illegal election conduct by Bell officials.

"My office has received several reports from residents of Bell indicating that city officials encouraged them to fill out absentee ballots and then collected the ballots," Brown said. "We have seen similar reports in the Los Angeles Times. If these allegations are true, this could be a serious violation of state law."

California law requires that absentee ballots must be mailed or brought to a polling place by the voter unless the voter is disabled or ill.

In the case of Bell, it appears as though improper procedures may have been followed by public officials in the very election that allowed the city to give out these outrageous salaries. If so, there may be grounds to seek additional civil or even criminal penalties.

"When city employees of a tiny suburb of L.A. make as much as or nearly double the salary of the President of the United States, things are out of control," Brown said.

Present or former residents of Bell who had absentee ballots picked up by city officials should call the attorney general's toll-free hotline, (866) 625-4400. Brown and his staff would also like to hear any information regarding conflicts of interest or self-dealing by Bell officials.

"It's possible that some people who were victimized by Bell officials may no longer live in Bell, and the only way we have to find these people is for them to call us," Brown explained.

Earlier today, Brown subpoenaed the testimony of past and present Bell officials and city council members. A team of state lawyers will depose these officials under oath on August 19 and 20. Before then, the officials are required to produce records related to pay and pension benefits, federal and state income tax returns, gifts received by or given to city officials, bank accounts and outside business interests. As part of his expanded investigation, Brown also issued a supplemental subpoena, demanding the release of records involving the city's former law firm.

Brown's investigation is aimed at determining whether criminal or civil action should be taken against Bell officials and others. He launched the investigation on July 22 following newspaper reports that Bell City Manager Robert Rizzo was paid $787,637 a year, Police Chief Randy Adams was paid $457,000, and Assistant City Manager Angela Spaccia was paid $376,288. The three have since resigned.

Four of five Bell city council members received nearly $100,000 a year each, but after vocal citizen protests, they reduced their annual stipends to $8,000.

On July 26, Brown issued subpoenas to the City of Bell for hundreds of employment, salary and contract records. Hundreds of pages of documents have been turned over, and Brown said he expects additional documents to be produced today and even more to be handed over in response to the new subpoenas.

Bell is one of a cluster of working class cities in southeast Los Angeles County with a high proportion of low-income residents. Its population was 36,624 in 2000.

In conjunction with the Bell investigation, Brown is also reviewing whether excessive salaries and pension benefits are being paid by local jurisdictions around the state.