Federal charges allege a supply chain stretching from a luxury Calabasas residence to open-air drug markets near MacArthur Park, raising new concerns about crime, addiction, and neighborhood recovery in Los Angeles.
Following the federal indictments, more details are emerging about the organization that controlled drug distribution in MacArthur Park.
At first, Honduran national Mallaly Moreno Lopez was identified as the Drug Queen who controlled and distributed the narcotics. Now it has been revealed that “La Jefa” was Yolanda Iriarte Avila, an American citizen with connections to the Sinaloa Cartel and Central American gangs in Los Angeles. Her boyfriend, Jesús Morales Landel, was identified by authorities as the link to distributors operating throughout the city.
Mallany has now become inmate number 2:26 MJ 02611 DUTY 1, while Yolanda is listed under case 2:26 mj 02611.
Yolanda Iriarte Avila did not keep a low profile. She chose a mansion in one of Southern California’s wealthiest neighborhoods, Calabasas, where she was neighbors with the Kardashian family, Drake, Justin Bieber, and others.
The mansion allegedly served as a receiving point for narcotics and shipments sent to different parts of the country.
The 40 year old woman was described by federal authorities as the number one drug trafficker in the MacArthur Park area. She was arrested on May 6, 2026 during the DEA operation known as “Operation Free MacArthur Park.”
“She used her luxury residence in Calabasas as a clandestine large scale storage hub for the later distribution of narcotics to city gangs,” according to the charges made public by authorities.
Afterwards, “she funneled the controlled substances to open air drug markets through her romantic partner, Jesús Morales Landel, 33, who operated directly on the streets surrounding the Alvarado corridor and MacArthur Park.”
During the raid on her Calabasas property, DEA agents seized approximately 18 kilograms, or 40 pounds, of powdered fentanyl.
Like Mallaly Moreno Lopez and others involved, she was formally charged by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California with possession with intent to distribute and distribution of controlled substances.
Because of the large volume of narcotics found at her residence, she faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison and a maximum sentence of life imprisonment without bail.
According to the DEA, the Mexican cartel established alliances with the Mexican Mafia, known as La Eme, and the Barrio 18 gang. These local organizations handled on the ground logistics, using intermediaries such as Moreno Lopez to package the drugs and supply street level dealers.
This strategic alliance allowed the Sinaloa Cartel’s drugs to flood the open air market along the Alvarado corridor without triggering violent territorial disputes, since park zones were strictly assigned by prison gang leaders.
Mallany Moreno López: A Life Surrounded by Gangs
Although she is of Honduran origin, local reports following her arrest indicate that she also holds U.S. citizenship. Despite her Honduran roots, federal prosecutors stated that Moreno López grew up immersed in Los Angeles gang culture because both of her parents were active members of the 18th Street Gang in California.
She lived in a heavily fortified apartment with a reinforced steel door in the Westmont area of South Los Angeles. DEA investigations determined that she operated as a logistical link between cartel suppliers and street dealers working along the Alvarado corridor. She allegedly acted under the influence of the 18th Street Gang.
Mallany comes from an environment closely tied to organized local crime. Her mother was arrested months earlier, in March 2026, during a separate LAPD operation targeting Keiko “Moms” González, identified as a leader within the Barrio 18 gang.
Mallany and her boyfriend, Jackson Tarfur, allegedly used their residence as a stash house. Afterwards, she concealed drug shipments inside local businesses that operated as fronts before delivering them to final distributors.
She was captured at her home by nearly two dozen armed DEA agents as part of the “Operation Free MacArthur Park” strategy.
At the moment authorities entered the residence, Moreno López and Tarfur allegedly attempted to quickly dispose of the narcotics by throwing multiple plastic bags filled with fentanyl into the toilet in an effort to flush them through the sewer system, an act documented by federal agents.
