Multi Agency Task Force NA09252jr

What:      Multi-Agency Warrant Service – Avenues Criminal Street Gang

When:     September 22, 2009
Takedown – 6:00 a.m.
Press Conference – 11:30 a.m.    

Where:    Police Academy Rock Garden
1880 North Academy Drive
Los Angeles, California 90012

    Media personnel should stage on Academy Road near the Elysian Park Police Academy between 5:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m.  At about 6:00 a.m. and when appropriate, media personnel will be directed to a staging area closer to the field command post.  The media is also reminded not to block traffic and may begin parking on the academy track at 10:00 a.m.  No driving or parking is permitted on the grass field.

The press conference will be held at the Police Academy Rock Garden at 11:30 a.m.           

Who:    The Honorable Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
Acting US Attorney George S. Cardona        
US Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Briane Grey
US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Special Agent in Charge John D’Angelo
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Special Agent in Charge Robert Schoch US Marshal Adam Torres
Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, Special Agent in Charge   Leslie P. DeMarco
Los Angeles High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force  
Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF)
California Assemblyman Kevin Deleon
Los Angeles County Probation Chief R. Taylor
Los Angeles County Supervisor Gloria Molina
Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca
California Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections
Los Angeles City Attorney Carmen Trutanich
Los Angeles City Councilman and Council President Eric Garcetti, District 13
Los Angeles City Fire Department
Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services

San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department
Riverside County Sheriff’s Department – Chief Deputy John Gollogly
Representatives from the following local police departments:  
Los Angeles City General Service Police Department
Riverside Police Department
Glendale Police Department
Ontario Police Department
LAPD First Assistant Chief Jim McDonnell, Chief of Staff
LAPD Assistant Chief Earl Paysinger, Director, Office of Operations
LAPD Deputy Chief Charlie Beck, Commanding Officer, Detective Bureau
LAPD Deputy Chief Sergio Diaz, Commanding Officer, Central Bureau
LAPD Commander Patrick Gannon, Assistant Commanding Officer, Detective Bureau
LAPD Captain Kevin McClure, Commanding, Officer Robbery Homicide Division
                
Why:    To announce the service of multiple search and arrest warrants as a culmination of a months-long investigation targeting the Avenues criminal street gang.  The media is invited to stage at the Elysian Park Police Academy and will receive updates on the number of arrests and significant seizures.

    The warrants executed today implicate members and associates of the Avenues criminal street gang for felony crimes including Narcotics and Gun Trafficking, Car Jacking, Home Invasion Robberies, Witness Intimidation and Murder.

    At about 11:30 a.m., agency representatives from the Multi-Agency Task Force will hold a press conference on the field of the Police Academy field at 1880 N. Academy Road.  Where possible, questions related to the months-long investigation will be answered and the final tallies for the morning will be released.
Additional:    It is respectfully requested that the command post be referred to as the “Elysian Park Command Post.” Efforts to avoid references to Dodger Stadium are greatly appreciated.  

Contact:    For further information contact LAPD Media Relations Section at 213-485-3586.