LAPD Gang Members Named Via Disciplinary Reports LAPD Evaded Discipline

_{An LAPD Cruiser blocks traffic on Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles on May 31, 2025. (Sean Beckner-Carmitchel)}

By Sean Beckner-Carmitchel

LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Police Department sought to discipline two Mission Division officers accused of discrimination and unlawful searches, according to internal disciplinary records that also identify them as participants in what California law defines as a law enforcement gang.

Previous reporting by the Ten Four stated that those officers had been working in the Mission Division; internal documents released to the Ten Four name several of the officers: Marvin Perez and Alan Carrillo. 

The LAPD disciplinary report details 17 allegations involving the two officers stemming from a May 22, 2023, incident. According to the disciplinary report, the officers did a “ghost stop,” or a stop that was conducted without activating body-worn video and wasn’t communicated to the department. They also hadn’t turned on their lights when detaining the man, and pointed service weapons at him.

In Los Angeles, officers are mandated by department policy to activate body-worn video equipment during all traffic stops, pedestrian stops, searches, and other investigative or enforcement activities where, “in the Officer’s judgment, video recording would assist in the investigation.” According to the disciplinary report, “Carrillo and Perez’s intentional decision not to activate their BWV and DICV was not only a violation of Department policy, but it was also a deliberate attempt to hide the truth.”

_{Discrimination Disciplinary Reports Regarding Carrillo and Perez(LAPD)}

The department states in disciplinary reports that they “canvassed the area of the stop and was unable to locate any evidence, video, or photographs of the incident.” Carrillo claimed to be too “hyper-focused,” on a gun sitting in the passenger’s seat to activate his body-worn video. The gun belonged legally to the detained man, according to the report.

The disciplinary report further states that a complaint to the department said the two men had unnecessarily detained him; they told him he was in “rival gang territory,” because his registration belonged to a different neighborhood. At one point, the man who’d been detained that day by the two officers said he was told by Carrillo “your registration is not from this neighborhood. You know that it’s (this area) a rival gang.”  

From January 1 to May 22, 2023 Perez and Carrillo’s stops were analyzed by the Department. Perez’s stops consisted of 51 Black people, 16-White, 235 Hispanic, and 15 Asian. Carrillo’s stops were listed as 34 Black, 12 White, 261 Hispanic, 2 Asian, and 4 Other.

LAPD Mission Area’s Gang Enforcement Detail (GED) was already under investigation for conducting similar “ghost stops.” A ghost stop was defined as a traffic or pedestrian stop in which officers intentionally did not notify the department’s communications division of the stop. Officers also are alleged to have conspired to ensure the stops were not documented by failing to activate their Body Worn Video.

_{Unlawful Search Disciplinary Reports Regarding Carrillo and Perez(LAPD)}

On December 18, 2023 the department’s Office of Operations as well as Office of the Chief of Police recommended both officers face a Board of Rights; the final administrative hearing before an officer can be dismissed.

_{January 2026 Disciplinary Report Summary (LAPD)}

The acknowledgment that an officer participated in gang activity appeared in LAPD’s January 2026 disciplinary report, which summarizes sustained misconduct findings and penalties each month and is released publicly. Among the sustained complaints, an officer is listed as having “participated in a Law Enforcement Gang.” The report does not name the officer and says that since he is retired, he will not receive any professional discipline from the department.

When previously asked for comment about LAPD’s discipline of Mission Division Gang Enforcement Detail officers accused of misconduct, representatives for Mayor Karen Bass referred the Ten Four to LAPD. LAPD responded to inquiries about these incidents and law enforcement gangs within the department by asking Ten Four to submit a public records request. That request led to Ten Four obtaining the records.

California state law defines a “law enforcement gang” as a group that engages in a pattern of on-duty behavior that “intentionally violates the law or fundamental principles of professional policing.” These patterns of behavior can include harassment or discrimination as well as the persistent practice of unlawful detention, excessive force, falsifying police reports.

The law requires that if law enforcement gang misconduct rises to the level of criminal allegations, the police department must refer the misconduct to the District Attorney’s Office or other prosecuting agencies. 

_{Charging Documents for Alan Carrillo(LA District Attorney)}

Carrillo was charged in 2023 for what appears to be a separate incident including two counts of altering, planting or concealing evidence as a peace officer, and three counts of petty theft. In a 2023 statement, then-District Attorney George Gascón said “the public’s trust and the integrity of law enforcement are undermined when officers tamper with evidence and steal items from the public.”

In 2023, LAPD announced that “the Department is in consultation with the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office” regarding investigations into the Mission Division. According to LAPD, the investigation had “been referred to the Public Corruption Civil Rights Section of the United States Attorney’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation Civil Rights Division has initiated an investigation.” 

_{Decline To Charge Documents for Cole Lewison(LA District Attorney)}

The incident describes another Mission Division, Cole Lewison, as being accused alongside Carrillo as having participated in an illegal stop. The stop ended with Carrillo in possession of brass knuckles owned by the person stopped. The District Attorney declined to file charges against Lewison. Lewison was still a current employee of LAPD as of March, 2026.

When asked in February about the two officers, a spokesperson for the District Attorney said that “The District Attorney’s Office always prioritizes case integrity and reliability. This is nowhere more crucial than for members of law enforcement who are prosecution witnesses. Deputy District Attorneys (DDAs) have an obligation to disclose impeachment evidence to the defense. Where prosecutors learn of evidence affecting witness integrity, handling DDAs and/or their supervisors will review the facts and circumstances to determine appropriate action. We are unable to comment on or identify case-specific Brady notifications that may have occurred.”

The statement continues, saying “However, any attorney who is concerned about the participation of a Mission Division officer in one of their cases and believes it affected the integrity of the prosecution may reach out to the handling office supervisor. Our supervisors are empowered to take any actions they believe are appropriate to carry out their ethical obligations.”

LAPD has not replied to specific inquiries about how many of their officers are currently being investigated or disciplined for their participation in law enforcement gang activity. In 2024, the department began the process to fire several officers in the Mission Division.

Two LAPD supervisors have accused the department’s top-level department leaders of  illegally falsified reports to the Board of Police Commissioners, LAPD’s highest disciplinary body. According to separate lawsuits, when they shared their concerns to their bosses, those bosses retaliated against them by transferring them to less prestigious assignments and disciplining them for minor infractions, the supervisors said. One of the lawsuits, filed by a high-ranking LAPD commander, alleges retaliation after raising concerns about bodycam misconduct within the department.

Even after the Board of Rights review was assigned to the two officers, neither officers ultimately received discipline from the department. The department attempted multiple times to contact Carrillo by telephone before attempting to serve him in person. Despite “an unknown female inside of the location in plain view from a front window,” an attempt to serve Carrillo at his place of residence was met with no answer.

Carrillo is currently listed as “separated,” from the department according to department spokespeople. A summary of discipline from the department in January, 2026 describes similar incidents to Carrillo and Perez; that officer is described as having received no disciplinary due to retirement.

Allegations of law enforcement gangs are not unique to the LAPD. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has faced years of scrutiny over accusations that its patrol stations and jails have dozens of them. Lawsuits and investigations have identified deputy groups with names including the Banditos, Executioners and Vikings.

The Mayor’s Office, Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office, or the Los Angeles Police Department responded to specific requests in time for publication. This article will be updated in the case of a response.

The man whose description of being detained led to the report said during his complaint that “These officers’ mental states are shams, I feel targeted now…” He further stated that “My only regret was not wearing my body cam that day.”