Federal agents took over MacArthur Park on Wednesday to "execute federal arrest and search warrants targeting the notorious open-air drug market there,” according to First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli.
It was part of a a massive drug raid across Southern California on Wednesday. in which 18 people were arrested. Essayli also said that 25 people were charged in a federal criminal complaint with possessing and distributing dangerous narcotics, including fentanyl and methamphetamine.
Operation Free MacArthur Park
Federal agents have taken control of MacArthur Park to execute federal arrest and search warrants targeting the notorious open-air drug market there.
We are going after street dealers and suppliers of massive amounts of fentanyl and… pic.twitter.com/sozcSCGo5u
— F.A. United States Attorney Bill Essayli (@USAttyEssayli) May 6, 2026
He added that one of the people arrested was the “park’s #1 drug trafficker.” The person was not identified, but Essayli said he was a Calabasas resident.
Among those arrested, federal officials said Mallaly Moreno-Lopez, 31, and Jackson Tarfur, 28, are believed to be the “main sources of supply of fentanyl powder and methamphetamine distributed in the Alvarado Corridor and MacArthur Park.”
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