Authored by Evgenia Filimianova via The Epoch Times,
Federal authorities have arrested 10 people in a major human trafficking investigation, with prosecutors saying the individuals targeted children and adults along South Los Angeles' Figueroa Corridor, marking the second large federal operation in the area in less than a year.
Acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli speaks as Los Angeles Police Department Chief Jim McDonnell (R) and Special Agent in Charge Kenny Cooper of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Los Angeles Field Division, look on at a press conference announcing an arrest in the Palisades Fire investigation in Los Angeles on Oct. 8, 2025. Mario Tama/Getty ImagesThe U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California, alongside Homeland Security Investigations, the Los Angeles Police Department, and IRS Criminal Investigation, announced the arrests on July 1.
A 65-count superseding federal indictment, returned June 25 and unsealed July 1, alleges that members and associates of the Hoover Criminal Gang (HCG) controlled much of the sex trafficking and prostitution activity along the Figueroa Corridor between February 2021 and June 2026.
Prosecutors said the indictment identifies 51 alleged victims.
Nine defendants were arrested on July 1, while another defendant was taken into custody on June 29.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said the arrests were intended to disrupt one of the city's most persistent trafficking operations.
"Sex trafficking
