Los Angeles, Ca
Southern California woman convicted of operating drug ring, narcotics delivery service
A Southern California woman was convicted for operating a large-scale drug ring and narcotics delivery business.
The suspect, Mirela “Mimi” Todorova, 36, from Hollywood, is a citizen of the United States, Canada, and Bulgaria, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
From June 2020 to March 2021, Todorova operated a “technology-savvy drug trafficking operation” to deliver drugs to customers across the Southland. She hired drivers and provided them with cell phones and narcotics to carry out the operation.
Some of the drugs she sold included counterfeit oxycodone pills that contained fentanyl. Todorova would sometimes deliver drugs to customers herself.
Throughout the operation, Todorova visited Mexico several times where she continued managing her drug business “while tending to her pet jaguar, ‘Princess,’” court documents said.
Todorova hired Mucktarr Kather Sei, 39, from L.A.’s Koreatown, as a driver and later gave him the keys to her Hollywood drug stash house, allowing him to run the drug ring’s operations while she managed him from abroad.
“Despite warnings from customers that the oxycodone pills she was selling were laced with fentanyl and potentially fatal, Todorova continued to sell them,” prosecutors said.
From November 2020 to January 2021, three customers who ingested Todorova’s drugs experienced near-fatal overdoses. Despite knowing the danger, prosecutors said Todorova continued to sell fentanyl-laced pills until February 2021.
In March 2021, search warrants were executed at Todorova’s home and vehicle. Authorities found a collection of drug trafficking materials and narcotics, including methamphetamine, cocaine, MDMA and more, at the scene.
In December 2021, she was accused of lying to law enforcement when saying she thought the drugs seized from her apartment were vitamins. Officials said she also lied when claiming she never instructed anyone how to package or make drugs and that she had only met her accomplice, Sei, twice before.
On March 4, 2025, after a nine-day trial, authorities said Todorova was found guilty of:
- 1 count of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances resulting in serious bodily injury
- 1 count of distribution of fentanyl
- 3 counts of distribution of fentanyl resulting in serious bodily injury
- 1 count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine
- 1 count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine
- 1 count of possession with intent to distribute MDMA (Ecstasy)
- 1 count of making false statements to federal investigators
Todorova must also forfeit $498,555 in drug proceeds to the government. She will face anywhere from 20 years to life in prison. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for Sept. 12. She has been in federal custody since April 2021.
Sei and two other suspects were charged including Christopher Y. Moreno Núñez, 29, of Pacific Palisades, and Ashley Alicia Nicole Johnson, 34, of Los Angeles. In 2024, each pleaded guilty to felony narcotics distribution charges and will be sentenced in the coming months.
“This case highlights the importance of looking at every overdose incident,” said Matthew Allen, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s L.A. Field Division. “This case started with a single overdose and led to the identification of the dealer responsible for multiple overdoses. This drug distributor had knowledge of the harm she was creating and didn’t care.”
“This defendant used her knowledge of technology to peddle the poison of fentanyl – despite knowing the pills she sold ran the risk of killing people,” said Joseph McNally, Acting U.S. Attorney. “Investigating and prosecuting these cases saves lives. I commend our local and federal partners for stopping this dangerous criminal organization and bringing justice to the victims here.”
A hospital needs help identifying a male patient who was found injured and unconscious in downtown Los Angeles.
The man is believed to be in his 30s, according to the Los Angeles General Medical Center.
He was found injured on the ground on Omar Street and has been hospitalized since June 22.
He stands 5 feet 8 inches tall and weighs 176 pounds. He has brown eyes, dark brown hair and tattoos across his upper body.
He did not have any personal belongings to help staff identify him or contact loved ones. Workers did not disclose the nature of his injuries.
Anyone who recognizes the man is asked to call clinical social worker Cesar Robles at 323-409-6885.
The public can also call the L.A. General Medical Center’s Department of Social Work at 323-409-5253 or, after hours from 5 p.m. to 8 a.m., call 323-409-6883. On weekends, call 323-409-5254.
Police are asking the public for help Wednesday in identifying a hit-and-run driver who left a woman badly injured in Long Beach late last month. The May 24 crash occurred around 11 p.m. as the victim was crossing East 2nd Street, according to the Long Beach Police Department. Video provided by police showed a dark-colored […]
WARNING: Video footage contains graphic violence
A 62-year-old street vendor is recovering after a brutally violent attack by another woman in broad daylight as bystanders in downtown Los Angeles looked on.
The attack happened around 4 p.m. on June 15 in the 700 block of Figueroa Street, where Arabelia Martinez has sold hot dogs for years to support herself and her family.
Video of the incident, which has since circulated widely online, appears to show a woman confronting Martinez at her stand before spraying sauce across the vendor’s cart. Martinez responds by throwing what appears to be Tajín seasoning in the woman’s direction, and the confrontation quickly escalates.
The difficult-to-watch footage shows Martinez being shoved to the ground and struck multiple times as people look on. Some can be seen attempting to intervene, but the assault continues for roughly a minute before coming to an end.
“I was speechless,” Martinez’s son, Constantino Garcia, said after watching the video. “I couldn’t even see the whole thing.”
According to Garcia, the suspect approached his mother before the attack and attempted to intimidate her into giving her money.
“The lady came up to my mom trying to intimidate her and extort her for money, telling her she needed a permit to sell, which my mom does have,” Garcia told KTLA’s Carlos Saucedo.
When Martinez refused, Garcia claims the woman became verbally abusive.
“After she didn’t get her way and tried to extort my mom, she said, ‘Go back to Mexico,’ and made some racist remarks,” he said. “She said some disgusting things to my mom.”
Garcia said his mother continues to suffer lingering effects from the attack.
“She keeps complaining about her head,” he said. “We need to go see a head specialist because her head doesn’t stop hurting. As you could see in the video, she got slammed to the ground.”
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A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia) -
A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia) -
A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia) -
A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia) -
A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia) -
A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia) -
A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia) -
A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia) -
A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia) -
A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia) -
A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia)
The video has also sparked outrage over the response from some witnesses who were nearby during the assault.
“What’s going on with our society?” Garcia said. “Are we getting desensitized to an elderly woman being beaten in broad daylight and being surrounded by people doing the bare minimum to help her? That was horrible for me to watch.”
Witness Sebastian Gutierrez said he arrived moments after the confrontation and saw Garcia’s attacker causing additional chaos in the area.
“The lady began to flip over the tables of vendors,” Gutierrez said, describing the woman as possibly unstable. “It definitely seemed like there were mental health issues or drugs involved, like we see with a lot of things here in downtown L.A.,” he said.
The Los Angeles Police Department has launched a battery investigation into the incident KTLA confirmed, though no suspect information or news of a potential arrest has been released.
Meanwhile, Martinez’s family has launched a GoFundMe campaign to help with her recovery and raise awareness about the dangers street vendors face daily.
“I hope that my mom gets justice for what happened to her,” Garcia said. He added that he’s been encouraged by the public response to the video.
“I’m grateful people are sympathizing with my mom,” he said. “People are giving it the attention it deserves.”
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