On Thursday, the FBI and LAPD teamed up and executed a pivotal takedown of a criminal organization called the Eastside Playboys. The East Los Angeles-based gang saw 28 of its members/associates, including the shoot-caller, go down in a huge sweep that stems from a tireless investigation into the gang's parent organization, the Mexican Mafia. According to the newly unsealed indictment, prosecutors were able to identify several members of the Eastside Playboys because of the signature tattoos on their bodies that often read, "ES, PBS and/or Playboys." Group members reportedly refer to themselves as "Rabbits," and they answer to the head of the Mexican Mafia, an inmate commonly known as "Big Rabbit." According to the RICO indictment, Elisea Luna, the primary target of the sweep, worked under "Big Rabbit" as the leader of the Eastside Playboys. The 47-year-old reportedly presided over the gang's drug trafficking process in addition to greenlighting various slayings amongst fellow members who disobeyed protocol.
Prosecutors suspect that the Eastside Playboys have been trafficking methamphetamine, cocaine, and fentanyl throughout the U.S. by using a variety of delivery services such as FedEx and the United States Post Office. It is also believed that the gang produced a fair amount of its product at their own laboratory in Long Beach.
In the wake of Thursday's enormous sweep, law enforcement recovered 283 kilograms of marijuana, 13.6 kilograms of fentanyl, 199 kilograms of methamphetamine, 27 kilograms of cocaine, 47 firearms, and $140,000 in cash. Following the raid, the leader of the Eastside Playboys was arrested for murder and racketeering.
“The indictments unsealed today charge a gang that stands accused of plaguing South Los Angeles for 50 years through repeated acts of violence, drug trafficking, extortion of local businesses, and weapons violations,” said Acting United States Attorney Stephanie S. Christensen. “Today’s coordinated law enforcement action targeted the Playboys street gang because of its alleged widespread criminal conduct, as well as the fear and intimidation its members imposed on our community.”
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Source: Los Angeles Magazine
