Federal and local law enforcement arrested nine people Wednesday in a coordinated takedown targeting a sex trafficking operation along South Los Angeles’ Figueroa corridor, where officials say girls as young as 14 are being sold for sex. Authorities also unsea
Early Wednesday morning on Los Angeles’ Figueroa corridor, federal and local investigators moved in and arrests began.
By Wednesday. nine people had been taken into custody as part of what officials described as a major “takedown” of a sex trafficking operation in the South Los Angeles area. The operation involved Homeland Security Investigations and the Los Angeles Police Department, according to First Assistant U.S. Atty. Bill Essayli. He said the effort was “targeting human trafficking in the Figueroa corridor. where girls as young as 14 are being sold for sex.”.
A U.S. attorney’s office spokesperson in Los Angeles said an additional arrest was also made Monday tied to the case.
The case took another step forward on Wednesday with a federal indictment unsealed naming the accused as “members and associates of an organization known as the ‘Hoovers.’” Authorities say the Hoovers gang largely controlled sex trafficking and prostitution along a 3.5-mile stretch of Figueroa Street between approximately Slauson Avenue and Century Boulevard—an operation officials had previously highlighted in August.
Images taken from court filings show publicized possession of firearms that authorities say allowed the Hoovers to maintain exclusive control of its territory for illicit purposes.
The Figueroa corridor. known as “The Blade. ” has long been described by police officials and advocates for trafficking victims as the city’s most notorious sex trade hub. or “track.” Police and advocates say the Hoovers gang has held a stranglehold on the area. a claim reflected in federal charging documents.
Those documents say the Hoovers formed in the late 1970s, with territory that largely encompassed the Figueroa corridor.
Among those charged is Cameron Lockett, 23, also known as “Jankie” and “Hesopayed,” of Anaheim. The indictment alleges that Lockett trafficked a then-18-year-old woman. beating her in the back and ribs and biting off a chunk of her cheek. After the attack, authorities said, he gave her a Percocet pill and sent her to the hospital to get stitches.
Federal charging documents also describe the Hoovers as having strongholds over specific hotels and motels in its territory, including the Stadium Inn & Spas. On Wednesday, authorities arrested Mukeshkumar Rambhai Ahir, 45, the manager of the Stadium Inn & Spas.
Authorities said they plan to release more details at a Wednesday morning news conference.
Figueroa corridor sex trafficking Los Angeles Police Department Homeland Security Investigations Hoovers gang The Blade human trafficking Stadium Inn & Spas Cameron Lockett Mukeshkumar Rambhai Ahir