In July 2023, Adrian Lopez, Heather Covarrubias and others kidnapped two victims to recover items they believed had been stolen during a robbery at Lopez's residence earlier that month. One of the victims was eventually allowed to leave, but the other victim fled after being brutally beaten. In May 2025, another shooting occurred outside a liquor store in La Puente, in which Isaac Estrada-Frost, mistaking a victim for a member of a rival gang, yelled racial slurs and fired at the victim's car as he drove away, hitting one of the vehicle's doors. Shootings, kidnappings, and illegal sales of weapons and narcotics are just four of the multiple criminal charges facing 16 alleged members of the Puente 13 street gang, which controls territory in the San Gabriel Valley and is linked to the Mexican Mafia. The arrest of the alleged criminals occurred on Wednesday, following the execution of arrest warrants based on federal complaints. Three are fugitives from justice: Larry Castillo, 42, alias “Lil Dee” of Victorville; Soo Kang, 31, alias “Easy” of Koreatown; and Bryan Gordian-Padilla, 24, alias “Goon” of West Covina. The Big Problem: “The problem that the ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives) faces, and we see it all the time, is that unfortunately minors are gaining access to firearms because they are being trafficked into California from other states,” Nicole Lozano, ATF Special Agent, told La Opinion. “That is the trend the ATF observes and it is a problem we focus on daily in our investigations.

According to the affidavits filed with the complaints, Puente-13 is a street gang based in the city of La Puente that enriches itself and the Mexican Mafia prison gang by controlling narcotics distribution within its “territory” in that city and the San Gabriel Valley, maintaining and expanding that control through violence and threats of violence, and punishing those in its territory who cooperate with law enforcement.

The affidavits describe a series of criminal acts, including the December 2022 shooting against rival gang members at a Covina residence, in which one of the shooters, Dominic Ornelas, tripped and left behind his left shoe, which later helped law enforcement link him to the shooting.

'Operation Burning Bridges' The law enforcement operation called "Operation Burning Bridges" involved agents and detectives from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the California Attorney's Office for the Central District of California, and the United States Marshals Service; The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD), the California Highway Patrol (CHP), and the police departments of Azusa, Baldwin Park, Covina, Chino, Glendora, Irwindale, and West Covina. Among those arrested—all U.S. citizens—are: Victor Sanchez, 24, alias “Pollo” and “Chicken,” of San Bernardino; Isaiah Castro, 24, alias “Boy,” of Azusa; Isaac Estrada-Frost, 21, alias “Ghost,” of Rosemead; Heather Covarrubias, 40, alias “Snowbella,” of Diamond Bar; and Dominic Ornelas, 23, alias “Dom” and “Lil Speedy,” of Rancho Cucamonga. and Adrian Lopez, 25, alias “Tapped In” and “Monkey,” from La Puente.

“Not all Latino gangs in California are linked to the Mexican Mafia, but basically, if you’re a Latino gangster, chances are you’re going to get arrested and end up in jail or prison,” warned Ciaran McEvoy, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles.

Following the operation, a total of 20 people were charged with various crimes, including methamphetamine distribution, conspiracy to commit kidnapping, possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, possession of a machine gun, and possession of a firearm to commit a drug trafficking offense.

Some of the defendants also trafficked carfentanil, a synthetic opioid 100 times more potent and deadly than fentanyl.

Nine of the defendants appeared in court The United States District Court in Los Angeles on Wednesday, while the other seven remaining defendants were arraigned on Thursday.

Generational Gang: The Mexican Mafia, or “La eMe,” was formed in 1957 by thirteen members of Hispanic street gangs from different Los Angeles neighborhoods who were incarcerated in what is now the Tracy State Prison for adults in California. It emerged to protect its members from other inmates inside the prisons.

One of the founders of La eMe was Luis “Huero Buff” Flores, who was an active member of the Barrio Hawaiian Gardens gang in Hawaiian Gardens, California.“The Mexican Mafia is a major prison gang in California,” McEvoy explained. He added that, as a criminal organization, belonging to the Mexican Mafia “is definitely like paying them tribute. You pay them money or whatever, and they take a cut of what you make. In return, they protect you when you’re in jail or prison. That’s basically what it is if you choose to lead a life of crime.” Another defendant, Heather Johnson, 38, of Victorville, is in state custody. During the course of this investigation, law enforcement seized approximately 4.5 kilograms (10 pounds) of methamphetamine, thousands of pills containing fentanyl and carfentanil, powdered fentanyl, 71 firearms, including 14 rifles, a device for converting weapons into machine guns, four short-barreled rifles, three firearms with erased serial numbers, three bulletproof vests, and thousands of rounds of ammunition. They also seized approximately $9,500 in cash. Other criminal acts described in the affidavits include the illegal sale of dozens of firearms and the trafficking of large quantities of narcotics and thousands of fentanyl and carfentanil pills. If convicted, nine of the arrested defendants would face maximum sentences of life imprisonment in federal prison. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kenneth R. Carbajal and Clifford D. Mpare, of the Serious Crimes Section, are handling this case.Nine of the arrested defendants face maximum sentences of life imprisonment in federal prison. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kenneth R. Carbajal and Clifford D. Mpare, of the Serious Crimes Section, are handling this case.Nine of the arrested defendants face maximum sentences of life imprisonment in federal prison. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kenneth R. Carbajal and Clifford D. Mpare, of the Serious Crimes Section, are handling this case.