A Victorville man is being sought as a fugitive following a large-scale raid targeting a Los Angeles County street gang with ties to the Mexican Mafia this week, authorities said.
Sixteen suspects were arrested Wednesday, Dec. 17, amid the federal investigation into the Puente-13 gang, based in the L.A. County suburb of La Puente, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
But three men, including one from Victorville, remained at large, officials said.
They are Larry “Lil Dee” Castillo, 42, of Victorville; Soo “Easy” Kang, 31, of Los Angeles; and Bryan “Goon” Gordian-Padilla, 24, of West Covina, according to a DOJ statement. Anyone with information was urged to contact law enforcement.
A 20th suspect, 38-year-old Heather Johnson of Victorville, was already in law enforcement custody, officials added.
The federal criminal complaint alleges the group’s involvement in a kidnapping, two shootings, illegal gun sales and trafficking of drugs including fentanyl, carfentanil, cocaine and methamphetamine.
Charges include distribution of methamphetamine, conspiracy to commit kidnapping, possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, possession of a machine gun and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
While carrying out searches and making arrests, federal investigators seized thousands of pills containing fentanyl and carfentanil, more than 10 pounds of methamphetamine, 71 guns, one machine gun conversion device, three pieces of body armor, thousands of rounds of ammunition and about $9,500 cash, prosecutors said.
What is Puente-13?
Puente-13 is a street gang based in La Puente “that enriches itself and the Mexican Mafia prison gang by controlling the distribution of narcotics within its ‘territory,’ maintaining and expanding that control through violence and threats of violence and punishing those in its territory who cooperate with law enforcement,” according to the DOJ statement.
Violence attributed to the defendants includes a shooting at a Covina home in December of 2022, as well as a May 2025 shooting outside a liquor store in La Puente, in which one of the defendants, “mistaking a victim for being a member of a rival gang, yelled racial slurs at the victim and shot at the victim’s car when the victim drove away from the scene, striking one of the car’s doors,” the statement said.
Two of the suspect are accused of kidnapping two victims in July of 2023, prosecutors said.
“One of the victims eventually was allowed to leave, but the other victim fled after being severely beaten,” the DOJ stated.
If convicted as charged, the defendants each face potential maximum sentences of life in prison.
Nine of the defendants who were in custody were scheduled to make initial court appearances Wednesday, Dec. 17 in federal court in Los Angeles. The other seven were expected to appear in court Thursday, Dec. 18.
Agencies that took part in the investigation included the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department; the Covina Police Department; the West Covina Police Department, the Baldwin Park Police Department and the California Highway Patrol.
Read the full complaint:
This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Victorville man sought as fugitive following massive L.A. County gang bust
Reporting by Brian Day, Victorville Daily Press / Victorville Daily Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
