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A large 3 a.m. inter-agency operation descended upon a Northeast L.A. neighborhood this morning, picking up dozens of Avenues gang members for crimes from graffiti to murder. As of 5 a.m., about 43 of the 88 members sought had been arrested, mostly in Glassall Park, according to the LA Times. The raid, which involved some 1,300 officers from the LAPD, DEA and other agencies, was the result of a long investigation that began after the murder of Juan Abel Escalante, a Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy, in Cypress Park. The gang was also responsible for a mid-day gun battle--AK-47s and all--last year February on the streets.
With roots from the 1950s and ties to the Mexican Mafia, they've been a lasting presence in the communities of Glassall Park, Eagle Rock, Highland Park and Cypress Park, intimidating the black population for living in the area and flooding the neighborhoods with their drug dealing operation.
"They’ve owned that community for a long, long time," a detective told the Times. "Only time will tell for sure, but I think this will be a blow that will finally make a lasting impact."