U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement worked with law enforcement partners in California and Florida. They arrested 13 alleged members and associates of Armenian organized crime syndicates on May 20. Those arrested face charges in five federal complaints. These complaints include a series of crimes. The crimes include attempted murder, kidnapping, and illegal firearm possession. They also involve thefts related to online retailer shipments, estimated to be worth millions of dollars.
“This transnational criminal organization operated like an international cartel. It had a brutal structure. It inflicted significant harm on public safety. It also caused considerable damage to legitimate commerce. It disrupted supply chains,” said ICE Homeland Security Investigations Los Angeles acting Deputy Special Agent in Charge Dwayne Angebrandt. Ara Artuni, 41, of Porter Ranch, California is one of the defendants charged. He faces charges of attempted murder in aid of racketeering. A rival, Robert Amiryan, 46, of Hollywood, California, is also charged. He faces kidnapping charges.
Vahan Harutyunyan, 50, of Hollywood, Florida, made his first court appearance in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and was detained. Two of the remaining defendants are presently detained in state custody on unrelated matters. They are Levon Arakelyan, 45, of Las Vegas, Nevada, and Ivan Bojorquez, 33, of Gardena, California.
Law enforcement seized approximately $100,000 in cash, three armored vehicles, and 14 firearms during the operation.
Armenian Organized Crime, a Russian mafia-affiliated transnational criminal organization, has made Los Angeles County a center of U.S. operations. This information is based on affidavits filed with the criminal complaints. Since 2022, two local leaders within the organization are known as avtoritet. In Russian, this means “authority.” They allegedly have engaged in a power struggle for control in their territory. This resulted in multiple murder attempts and a kidnapping. Artuni, an avtoritet, better known in underworld circles by his moniker “Rubo Fish,” is charged with ordering the attempted murder of Amiryan during the summer of 2023. In retaliation, Amiryan, also an avtoritet whose nickname is “Aro,” allegedly conspired with members of his own criminal organization to kidnap and torture one of Artuni’s associates in June 2023.
Artuni, an avtoritet, is charged with ordering the attempted murder of Amiryan during the summer of 2023. In retaliation, Amiryan, also an avtoritet, allegedly conspired with members of his own criminal organization to kidnap and torture one of Artuni’s associates in June 2023.
Artuni and his criminal enterprise, since at least 2021, have allegedly committed additional crimes like attempted murder. These include bank fraud, wire fraud, and “cargo theft” targeting online retailers such as Amazon.com Inc. Artuni Enterprise members and associates enrolled with Amazon as carriers. They contracted for trucking routes. While transporting the goods, they diverged from the route. They then stole all or part of the shipment. To date, the Artuni Enterprise has allegedly stolen goods from Amazon worth more than $83 million. These figures are based on estimates provided by Amazon. Court records indicate that Artuni’s Enterprise, as prosecutors reference it, has gotten the upper hand by on ripping off Amazon for millions. This was done in an elaborate scheme.
The Artuni Enterprise also ran a “credit card bust out” scheme. They charged various credit cards to a sham business. They then drained the business account before the credit card companies could collect the to-be disputed funds. Strangely, prosecutors note, Artuni is a “self-reported Iranian citizenship but suspectedly, was actually Armenian who commanded over a small army and an actual armory in the Valley.”
On the other side, Amirya was “the target in multiple shooting incidents,” prosecutors say. He allegedly kidnapped and tortured a soldier for Artuni. Amirya was “present at the scene,” which indicates “his importance in the community.” This also shows his willingness to commit violent crimes. He does this to benefit and protect his standing and the standing of the Amiryan Organized Crime Group.
“Today’s arrests show my office and our law enforcement partners’ commitment to keeping America safe. We do this by dismantling transnational criminal organizations,” said United States Attorney Bill Essayli. “Let today’s enforcement action be a warning to criminals. Our communities are not your playground. Do not engage in violence and thuggery here.”
“Investigators from the Burbank Police Department spent hundreds of hours on these cases. They worked tirelessly to investigate these heinous violent crimes,” said Burbank Police Chief Rafael Quintero. “The Burbank Police Department is grateful for the assistance from its law enforcement partners and the United States Attorney’s Office for their work in holding these individuals accountable for their actions.”
“Dismantling transnational criminal organizations is at the core of HSI’s mission,” continued Angebrandt. “HSI is working closely with our law enforcement partners. We are holding these perpetrators accountable. We are disrupting their criminal enterprise at every level.”
The arrested individuals face federal complaints for crimes including attempted murder, kidnapping, thefts of online retailer shipments, and illegal firearm possession. In the 234-page indictment unsealed this week, there were details of terrifying home invasions. During these invasions, victims were shot dead as they slept. The document revealed inhuman acts of torture and drive-by assassination attempts. Details also emerged of the labyrinthine white-collar crimes the Armenian mob is infamous for. Sometimes they even used members of the Mexican Mafia to carry out specific hits, according to the indictment. They flew drones over the homes of targets in the minutes before shots rang out.
Burbank police followed a blood trail in one brazen attack. It led from a gang member covered in 13 tattoos to a bedroom. There, the wife of a purported Armenian mobster was wrapped in a blanket, bleeding. When an officer asked who shot her, she responded, “I can’t talk.”
The police tracked the kidnapping victim to a North Hollywood home using his cell phone location. Although he was brutally beaten, he was uncooperative with the police. He insisted that his attackers were “innocent”, and that “God” was in charge of his fate. He lived, but his kidnapping is now among the dozens of violent incidents listed in the indictment.
Federal authorities began the shakedown on Tuesday. They had been gathering intelligence in Operation Supper’s Ready for years. Multiple agencies were involved, including the Los Angeles and Burbank Police departments. “Our commitment to public safety is strengthened through collaboration,” said Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell. “By working hand-in-hand with our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, we are united in our mission to identify, apprehend, and bring violent criminals to justice. Together, we are sending a clear message: violence will not be tolerated in our communities.”
If convicted of all charges, the defendants will face statutory maximum sentences ranging from 10 years in federal prison to life imprisonment.
The Los Angeles Police Department Major Crimes Division – Transnational Organized Crime Section; the Burbank Police Department; Homeland Security Investigation’s (HSI) Northridge and Ventura offices; the United States Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG); IRS Criminal Investigation; and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are investigating this matter.
Assistant United States Attorneys Lyndsi Allsop and Kenneth R. Carbajal of the Violent and Organized Crime Section and Tara B. Vavere of the Asset Forfeiture and Recovery Section are prosecuting this case. The Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Violent Crime and Racketeering Section provided substantial assistance.
These cases are part of Operation Take Back America. This is a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice. It aims to repel the invasion of illegal immigration. The goal is also to achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs). Additionally, it seeks to protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.
The politicians in California have given up on governing their state and have concentrated on being another Hollywood star. The politicians from California have failed the residents. All throughout the 2024 elections, Kamala Harris an ex-California prosecutor, told us she fought and prosecuted transnational gangs. The two biggest stories in the news are the removal of transnational gangs and this recent crime bust. What transnational gang was Kamala Harris prosecuting?
The Trump administration is just proving a Democrat political talking point by the recent arrest of 13 alleged members and associates of Armenian organized crime syndicate. The Democrats told us time and time again, that nobody is above the law. President Donald Trump and the ICE officers are just enforcing a Democrat political talking point.