LOS ANGELES — Federal authorities arrested 18 people on May 6, 2026, around MacArthur Park in Los Angeles on charges related to selling illicit fentanyl and methamphetamine. The Drug Enforcement Administration led the multi-agency operation, which involved more than 200 of its personnel and resulted in the seizure of 40 pounds of fentanyl from a single residence.

The operation began on the night of May 5, 2026, with three warrants executed the following morning at residences in Southern California. Law enforcement also served six warrants at businesses found to be selling narcotics in MacArthur Park. Aerial footage showed agents gathered outside a strip of businesses across from the park, with one agent appearing to use a chainsaw to cut through a business's wall.

A total of 25 people have been charged in federal court with possession with intent to distribute and distribution of a controlled substance related to MacArthur Park, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Los Angeles. Seven other defendants are considered fugitives. The 18 arrested on May 6 are expected to make their first court appearances on Thursday.

According to a criminal complaint, Mallaly Moreno-Lopez and Jackson Tarfur were among the main sources of fentanyl and methamphetamine distributed around MacArthur Park on behalf of the 18th Street Gang. The complaint alleges the couple hand-delivered narcotics to a storefront on the Alvarado corridor, the eastern border of the park, for subsequent distribution to street-level dealers. The two had not been assigned attorneys in court as of May 7, 2026. Other defendants were surveilled and caught selling drugs to undercover federal agents.

The complaint also alleges 27 separate drug deals involving fentanyl and methamphetamine took place around MacArthur Park from March 9 to April 15, 2026. The Crazy Riders Gang and MS-13 are also involved in sourcing drugs around MacArthur Park, according to the complaint. The complaint states that gang members rarely sell user-quantity drugs directly, instead distributing them to runners who sell them on the street.

Since March, the DEA has worked with the Los Angeles Police Department and Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department on an investigation into controlled substance trafficking around MacArthur Park, with the goal of identifying distributors, gathering evidence, and charging them. Authorities conducted surveillance and used undercover officers and confidential informants to make drug purchases. Investigators have targeted the Sinaloa Cartel as the suppliers of the fentanyl and methamphetamine in the area.

First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli posted a video on X showing LAPD officers assisting with the operation and a home in a residential neighborhood being raided. "We're here today because California policy has failed," Essayli said. "MacArthur Park should be for families, should be for residents of Los Angeles, not for drug dealers and gangsters."

MacArthur Park is a densely populated immigrant neighborhood west of downtown Los Angeles. The park and its surrounding areas have hosted numerous homeless encampments and open-air drug use in recent years and are part of contested gang territory, according to federal officials.