Police Mount Anti-Gang Sweep in West Santa Ana Neighborhood

A small army of police and FBI agents swooped down on a troubled neighborhood Wednesday after securing indictments against more than 100 suspected drug and weapons dealers, capping a seven-month investigation into several notorious gangs.

Police described the sweep, the biggest in Orange County history, as an all-out push to clean up an area seemingly impervious to recent drops in crime.

The secret operation centered on one veteran gang member who gained the trust of illegal drug dealers and made hundreds of purchases of narcotics, stolen cars and high-powered firearms.

As the man played his role, law enforcement officers in a nearby vehicle recorded the transactions with electronic surveillance equipment.

A secretly impaneled Orange County Grand Jury spent seven weeks watching video footage of the illegal purchases and listening to testimony from officers. The panel handed up 125 indictments.

Armed with arrest warrants, more than 400 officers from federal, state and local agencies conducted Wednesday’s raid. With snipers atop nearby roofs, officers smashed windows and hauled bleary-eyed members of the Santa Nita and rival gangs from their homes, some of them clad only in underwear.

In all, police moved on 139 suspects. As of Wednesday night, police were still searching for more than 40 suspects after arresting about that number in the morning raid. More than 50 of those indicted were already in custody on unrelated charges.

The operation’s key informant is a convicted felon who cooperated with authorities in exchange for money and help with immigration problems, police said. They would not identify him or say how much he was paid.

Authorities said they were unconcerned that those arrested might make an issue of the informant’s criminal record and that he was getting paid to help police.

The crackdown ends what local officials call a reign of terror conducted by gang members in a neighborhood off Harbor Boulevard and McFadden Avenue next to the Santa Ana River.

“People shouldn’t be afraid to have the kids go out and play,” said Santa Ana Police Sgt. Raul Luna. “They shouldn’t be afraid to use the local park because of graffiti and gang members present. And they shouldn’t be intimidated because people are cruising the streets, giving them dirty looks.”

Law enforcement officials selected the neighborhood for its so-called Operation Orion based on a review of crime statistics and interviews with residents.

Since 1990, Santa Ana’s crime rate has plunged 62%, with gang-related homicides dropping from a peak of 48 in 1993 to seven last year. Serious crimes also fell in the west Santa Ana neighborhood, but police and residents said gang members still ruled the streets, selling illegal drugs and weapons in plain sight.

“Just because crime is down, it doesn’t mean that there was no crime in this community,” said Lt. Bill Tegeler. “The key was the criminals were doing the crimes in public.”

Residents said they have grown accustomed to watching the purchase of illegal drugs, weapons and stolen property in front of their homes.

Alex Leon, the manager of a taco stand, has been robbed five times in the last five years. “There’s lots

of violence in the streets, and at night it’s dangerous here,” he said. “It’s a real good thing they did this.”

In one videotaped example, police watched a 14-year-old try to trade a pistol for a more powerful weapon. In another, the police informant bought 12 vehicles valued at $140,000 from members of a stolen car ring that was broken up during the probe.

The $500,000, multi-agency effort was modeled after a smaller sweep of Santa Ana’s 6th Street gang six years ago.

Operation Orion will continue beyond the arrests, according to authorities. City officials hope to launch programs that will eradicate graffiti and provide mentoring and recreation programs for local youths.

“This is not just a one-day operation,” Luna said. “This is just the first phase of pulling the weed from the garden and planting seeds in the neighborhood so that residents can reclaim the streets.”

During the city’s 1994 sweep, police arrested 117 people. But authorities were later forced to release four suspects who were somewhere else when they were supposedly watched making illegal drug deals. Authorities said Wednesday that they have learned from their mistakes.

The current undercover operation grew from a $1-million grant from the U.S. Department of Justice to combat neighborhood crime.