Four Chinese nationals were arrested on federal and state charges for their alleged involvement in brothels in Monterey Park and San Gabriel. Jian "David" Guo, 42, of Arcadia, Huagui "Candy" Lotto, 53, of Rowland Heights, Lotto's husband Phillip Fu, 47, of Rowland Heights, and Yibin Zhang, 45, of Monterey Park, were arrested. If convicted of the state charges, the maximum sentence would be 7 years and 4 months.
Gracie Gao, 57, and Steve Wang, 58, were arrested on suspicion of operating a house of prostitution on the 200 block of West Palm Avenue in Arcadia. Gao and Wang were booked on a misdemeanor charge and later released on $500 bail. The arrests at the well-kept ranch-style house surprised neighbors.
Arcadia Police Department bust suspected brothel in the 400 block of West Duarte Road. Two female Chinese nationals and two male San Gabriel Valley residents were arrested.
Los Angeles County sheriffs arrested 37 suspects in a sting operation to uncover prostitution in Alhambra, Arcadia, Baldwin Park, Monrovia, Monterey Park, Pasadena, and Rosemead, and several unincorporated areas. One woman was put in protective custody as a possible victim of human trafficking.
Nine people face federal charges for allegedly smuggling blue jeans from China by way of a Foreign Trade Zone in Industry. The alleged smugglers avoided import duties and taxes that would have amounted to between $2 million and $2 million in tax revenues for the government since 2009, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Two of the alleged are Taylor "David" Wong, 49, of Arcadia and Tsu "Nick" Wei Lin, 41, of Arcadia. The others are Joel Elder of Long Beach, Jianying "Jonathan" Huang, a Chinese national, Xiaoqiong "Joan" Hou of Diamond Bar, Rebecca Ho of Alhambra, Yuling Wang of Walnut, Keen "Alven" Wai Choo of Rowland Heights and Wei "Julia" Lai, the key figure in the indictment.
Arcadia couple Edward Chen, aka Jianqiao Chen, Jian Qiao Chen, and Jian Chen aka Jing Jiang and Jean Jiang, accused of fraud involving defrauding investors through EB-5 visa schemes. The couple's companies raised more than $22.5 million from 45 Chinese investors, purportedly to build an interior design center in Ontario and a condominium building in Los Angeles. See also "Arcadia couple faces court hearing for stealing $12 million," Arcadia Weekly, p. 1,3 October 5, 2017.
Police arrested four people, including a 13-year-old, on prostitution-related charges last week by responding to a Craigslist advertisement. Arcadia police spokesperson Sergeant Dean Caputo said the four were arrested at Santa Anita Inn.
Arcadia police, working with other law enforcement agencies, uncovered a major auto theft ring operating in the San Gabriel and San Fernando Valleys. Two men were arrested and four cars were recovered from a warehouse in Arcadia.
A nationwide forgery scheme uncovered by the Arcadia Police Department has resulted in the arrest of three men at the Santa Anita Avenue branch of the Bank of America.
Four San Gabriel Valley students recognized with the Congressional Award Medal from Congresswoman Judy Chu. Recipients were Richard Dong of Arcadia, Julieanna Guo of Alhambra, Cristie Huang from Arcadia and Melanie Phan (Claremont).
Police responding to a 911 hangup call in the 700 block of Sharon Road found a suspected brothel stocked with young women, gambling paraphernalia, contraceptives, and extensive lists with names and phone numbers. Seven men and eleven women were arrested.
An Arcadia woman has been charged with federal tax violations for her alleged role in a Monterey Park insurance scam that is the largest ever uncovered. Catherine Huang is accused of conspiracy and filing a false tax return.
The Feds (Secret Service, part of the U.S. Treasury Department) take over counterfeiting case from Arcadia Police Department. Five individuals were arrested on suspicion of passing counterfeit bills at Robinsons-May, Macy's and possibly JC Penney, at Westfield Shoppingtown in Arcadia.
Arcadia police arrested a suspected carjacker named David Barragan, 24, of Los Angeles, after he crashed a stolen car into a utility pole during a 100 mph police chase.