Two members of a Southern California street gang operating under a branch of the Mexican Mafia prison gang were found guilty by a jury today of murdering a man outside his home while trying to rob him.
Ysrael Jacob Cordova, 41, also known as “Trips,” and “Tripper,” of Placentia, California, and Ricardo Valenzuela, 44, also known as “Solo,” of Buena Park, California, each were found guilty of one count of murder in aid of racketeering activity (VICAR murder).
“Gang members directing crimes from behind bars cannot be tolerated.” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “This case charged both the shooters and the perpetrator who ordered the robbery. Acts of violence like these have no place in our communities, and the Criminal Division will continue to work to keep our citizens safe.”
“We will never tolerate senseless acts of gang violence on the streets, especially those ordered by convicted felons behind bars,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli for the Central District of California. “We will vigorously prosecute gang violence to keep our community safe and to provide justice for the victims.”
“These convictions help ensure that those engaging in harm as part of gang-related activity will be brought to justice,” said Acting Assistant Director John R. Dozier Jr. of the FBI’s Criminal Division. “The FBI, showcased today through our efforts on the Homeland Security Task Force, remains committed to pursuing and disrupting individuals bringing violence to our communities.”
The Mexican Mafia, also known as “La Eme,” is a U.S.-based prison gang that has immense control over Hispanic street gangs in Southern California, directing illegal activities from prisons and collecting a portion of the proceeds from drug trafficking, illegal gambling, and other crimes committed on the streets.
According to evidence presented at a weeklong trial, the robbery was ordered by a Mexican Mafia member in charge of criminal activities in Orange County (O.C.), who was imprisoned at the Orange County jail at the time of the murder. He communicated the order to rob the victim to a Mexican Mafia member incarcerated in a different California prison, who in turn communicated the order to Cordova and Valenzuela.
That same day, Cordova and Valenzuela were driven to the victim’s neighborhood in Placentia to rob him. Both Cordova and Valenzuela brandished long guns. Cordova shot and killed the victim. The robbery and murder were captured on a surveillance video recording which was introduced by the government as evidence during the trial.
Below are screenshots from that video:
Sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 22 at which time Cordova and Valenzuela will face mandatory penalties of life in prison. They have been in federal custody since the spring of 2022.
Federal prosecutors have secured 15 convictions in this criminal investigation targeting the O.C. Mexican Mafia. Of the eight remaining defendants, one is scheduled to go to trial in July 2027 on VICAR and firearms charges and seven are scheduled for trial in August 2027 on charges that include racketeering conspiracy, VICAR, drug trafficking, and firearms offenses.
The FBI, the Santa Ana Police Department, the Anaheim Police Department, the Fullerton Police Department, the Placentia Police Department, the Orange County District Attorney’s Office, and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation investigated this matter.
This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders.
Trial Attorney Dennis Robinson of the Justice Department’s Violent Crime and Racketeering Section (VCRS) with significant assistance from VCRS Trial Attorney Grace Bowen, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Greg Scally and Caitlin J. Campbell for the Central District of California are prosecuting this case.