18th Street gang members arrested on racketeering charges

L.A., CA.
9:08 AM | June 16, 2009

About a dozen 18th Street gang members and an attorney who allegedly served as an intermediary between the gang and the Mexican Mafia were arrested early this morning by federal agents and local police, according to a law enforcement official familiar with the case.

The arrests -- and those of dozens more alleged 18th Streeters already in custody on other charges -- are part of a racketeering indictment unsealed this morning, said the official, who was not authorized to speak about it publicly.

Among the crimes alleged in the indictment are the 2007 murder of a 3-week-old baby and a previously unsolved slaying from 2001, the law enforcement official said. The raid this morning was led by the FBI and the Los Angeles Police Department.

Authorities have scheduled a noon news conference at FBI headquarters in Westwood to provide details about the case.

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