A man in Pomona was shot at more than a dozen times this past July after gang members put him on a list barring him from the city and its illegal casinos over a debt they said he owed, according to authorities. Nine people now face charges in connection with the alleged Mexican Mafia-linked murder conspiracy and extortion scheme, with six already in custody, two still being sought and one already behind bars on unrelated charges.
The case, detailed by MyNewsLA.com, centers on a gunman who allegedly fired between 12 and 15 rounds while walking toward the victim's vehicle in Pomona in July, according to investigators. The victim's car was struck at least three times, authorities said, and a separate vehicle parked outside a nearby church was hit at least four times, including a round that struck the driver's-side head rest. Eight of the nine defendants are alleged associates of the Mexican Mafia prison gang, per the FBI, while a ninth is accused of removing spent ammunition casings from the scene afterward.
Investigators say the victim was targeted over a perceived debt and alleged violations of Mexican Mafia rules. Prosecutors allege he had been placed on what is known as an 86 list, a designation that barred him from entering Pomona or the illegal casinos the gang operates, with threats of death if he violated it. His vehicle was also taken as part of the alleged extortion scheme, and the FBI says gang associates demanded $2,000 from him to lift the threat of violence and arrange the car's return.
How 86 Lists and Gambling Dens Fund Gang Discipline
In this case, authorities allege the victim was placed on an 86 list, barring him from Pomona and the illegal casinos and carrying threats of death if he violated the ban.
The illegal casinos referenced in the victim's ban, known as casitas, are a well-documented revenue source for the gang. These underground gambling parlors run out of homes, warehouses and storefronts across Los Angeles County and can bring in tens of thousands of dollars a week, with mandatory cuts funneled to incarcerated Mexican Mafia leaders in exchange for territorial protection, according to 2023 reporting by the Los Angeles Times. Casitas have been associated with assaults, shootings and extortion.
Search warrants tied to the case turned up roughly $200,000 in cash, methamphetamine, and 11 firearms with missing or obliterated serial numbers, commonly known as ghost guns, according to the FBI.
Who's Been Arrested, and Who's Still Missing
Six of the nine defendants were arrested Wednesday: 34-year-old Jose Montano of Compton, 25-year-old Stephane Lechuga of Ontario, 56-year-old Joseph Rizo of Chino Hills, 34-year-old Irving Cisneros of Hacienda Heights, 37-year-old Jovana Reyes of Monterey Park, and 48-year-old Ruben Figueroa of Pomona. Two more defendants, 44-year-old Jeffrey Griffin of Montclair and 30-year-old David Arenas of Pomona, were still being sought as of publication. A ninth defendant, 47-year-old Jose Argumedo of Monterey Park, was already incarcerated on unrelated charges.
The case was investigated jointly by the FBI's San Gabriel Valley Safe Streets Task Force and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's Major Crimes Bureau, with charges filed by the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office. The task force itself has deep roots in the region: formed in 2008 and sponsored by the Pomona Police Department, it draws personnel from the FBI, DEA, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, Pomona and El Monte police departments, and state corrections, according to the FBI. It has worked this kind of case before — in 2017, the same task force brought a 14-defendant indictment targeting Mexican Mafia associates accused of ordering jailhouse assaults against inmates who broke gang rules or cooperated with police, per Corrections1.
Part of a Wider Pattern Across the Region
This isn't an isolated case for the San Gabriel Valley. In March 2026, reputed Pomona Mexican Mafia leader Michael “Big Mike” Lerma and three Pomona-area gang associates faced possible life terms following 2025 racketeering convictions for ordering the 2020 murder of an inmate at MDC Los Angeles over an unpaid drug debt, according to a connected Hoodline report. In June 2025, the FBI's task force and the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office also charged 19 Mexican Mafia members and associates after a gang leader nicknamed “The Elegant One” placed a well-known rapper on a green-light list, hit orders that investigators say originated from inside California state prisons and county jails.
The gang's reliance on illegal gambling has drawn federal attention well beyond Pomona. Federal prosecutors unsealed indictments against 47 Mexican Mafia members and associates under Operation Gangsta's Paradise, involving allegations of extortion, drug trafficking, illegal gambling and violence, the Associated Press reported.
A secretary and a facilitator relayed orders on behalf of an imprisoned Mexican Mafia leader.
