Federal agents arrested 16 alleged members of Puente-13 — a violent San Gabriel Valley-based gang known for carrying out killings “greenlighted” by the Mexican Mafia, kidnapping enemies and trafficking significant amounts of methamphetamine and fentanyl, authorities said.
The suspects were arrested Wednesday on federal complaints alleging their involvement in a kidnapping, two shootings, illegal firearms sales and the trafficking of narcotics, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
The complaints name 20 alleged members and associates, three of whom remain at large and one who was already in state custody. The at-large defendants are Larry Castillo, 42, a.k.a. “Lil Dee,” of Victorville; Soo Kang, 31, a.k.a. “Easy,” of Koreatown; and Bryan Gordian-Padilla, 24, a.k.a. “Goon,” of West Covina.
Authorities said others arrested Wednesday had aliases including “Pollo,” “Ghost,” “Snowbella,” “Lil Speedy” and “Monkey.”
During the investigation, authorities seized 71 firearms and thousands of rounds of ammunition, prosecutors said. They confiscated thousands of pills containing fentanyl and carfentanil — a synthetic drug more than 100 times as potent as fentanyl by weight — and 10 pounds of methamphetamine.
In addition to drug trafficking and illegal firearm sales, the complaints link alleged Puente-13 members to three violent crimes — a December 2022 shooting of rival gangsters at a Covina residence; a July 2023 kidnapping of two victims, one of whom was beaten with a metal pole; and a May 2025 shooting outside a La Puente liquor store.
Puente-13 is a multigenerational Latino street gang that was founded in the early 1950s in La Puente, according to an affidavit filed with the complaints.
Over the years, it has expanded its membership to about 600 affiliates and its territory to the communities of Hacienda Heights, Walnut, Industry, Pomona and West Covina, the affidavit states. There are at least 14 known subsets, or “cliques,” with names such as Ballista Street, Blackwood Street, Northam Street and Dial Avenue, taken from areas where leaders live.
The “13” in the gang’s name denotes its affiliation with the Mexican Mafia, as the letter “M” is the 13th letter in the alphabet. The Mexican Mafia gang originated within the prison system to control and direct the activities of Southern California Latino street gangs, according to the affidavit.
“The Mexican Mafia leaders issued directions and orders, including orders to kill rival gang members, which were referred to as ‘green-lights,’” the affidavit states. “Those orders were to be executed by California street gang members, including members of Puente-13, and were understood by Puente-13 gang members as opportunities to gain elevated status.”
Mexican Mafia leaders also collected a share of Puente-13 members’ profits in drug and firearm sales as a form of tax, the affidavit states.
As part of the investigation, confidential informants and undercover agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives purchased drugs and firearms from alleged gang members, according to the complaints.
The ATF led the investigation with help from the Covina Police Department, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, the West Covina Police Department, the California Highway Patrol and the Baldwin Park Police Department.
If convicted as charged, nine of the 20 defendants face maximum sentences of life in federal prison, prosecutors said.
Wednesday’s arrests follow a similar bust in October when federal agents arrested multiple alleged members of the Mexican Mafia-affiliated gang Rancho San Pedro in the Los Angles Harbor Area. In that case, 13 people were charged with being part of a criminal enterprise and with conspiring to possess and distribute illegal drugs.
This story originally appeared on LA Times
