15 Arrested, 21 Weapons Seized in Predawn Raid
Sheriff’s deputies arrested 15 gang members and seized 21 weapons Thursday during a predawn raid at homes in Lennox, Hawthorne and Inglewood, a department spokesman said.
The sweep was aimed at ending a series of shootings between rival gangs over drug sales, said Sheriff’s Deputy Jim Hellmold.
The violence began with a shooting in Hawthorne on Aug. 12, triggering 20 retaliatory attacks that left two men dead, he said.
Investigators spent a month trying to get information from uncooperative victims who were either gang members or intimidated into silence by gangs.
Starting at 3 a.m. Thursday, Hellmold said, more than 200 deputies, along with officers from the Hawthorne Police Department and the state Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement, served search warrants at 20 homes.
Authorities seized 11 handguns, eight assault rifles, two shotguns and 500 rounds of ammunition. Ballistic specialists will conduct tests on the weapons to determine if they were used in the crimes, he said.
More than $12,000 in cash and a quantity of marijuana and methamphetamines were also found.
The 15 men, whose names were not immediately released, are being held at the Lennox sheriff’s station on charges ranging from possession of illegal weapons to probation and narcotics violations, he said.
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