31 alleged Mexican Mafia members and associates indicted on racketeering, murder, drug and gun charges
Three alleged Orange County Mexican Mafia members and 28 alleged associates are facing a series of charges as a result of a years-long investigation, the Department of Justice announced Wednesday. The defendants are facing charges that include murder, attempted murder, drug and gun related charges as well as racketeering offenses.
According to a criminal complaint that was unsealed Wednesday, defendants Johnny Martinez, Robert Aguirre and Dennis Ortiz were allegedly in charge of "criminal activities" throughout Orange County, California, and within the area's prisons and jails between 2016 and 2022. The 33-count indictment also accuses multiple defendants of working as "mouthpieces," representatives and secretaries for the three members.
The Mexican Mafia, otherwise known as La Eme, consists of senior members of Latino street gangs who've joined together to rule and profit from other California gangs, according to the DOJ. The members allegedly divvied up control across various areas throughout the Southern California and would receive "taxes" paid by gangs so as to allow drug distribution within the area.
Over the course of around six years, the OC Mexican Mafia is accused of committing violent crimes including armed robbery, several brutal murders, including one inside a correctional facility, and multiple attempted murders.
The group is also accused of engaging in drug distribution, which carries a maximum life sentence in prison and a mandatory minimum sentence of five to 10 years, the DOJ said. The Justice Department said that, as part of an investigation, undercover authorities conducted multiple purchases of methamphetamine and heroin from OC Mexican Mafia associates.
Among the 31 defendants charged, 21 were already in custody while nine were arrested either Tuesday night or Wednesday morning.
United States attorney Tracy L. Wilkison vowed to "continue to investigate, arrest and prosecute these individuals to the fullest extent of the law to restore a sense of safety to so many neighborhoods that have felt the impact of their destructive conduct."
"The violence, drug-dealing and other criminal acts being committed in our communities by gangsters associated with the Mexican Mafia is being met with the strongest possible response by law enforcement," she said.