Toonerville Rifa 13

November 8, 2017 UnitedGangs.Com Hoods, Los Angeles Barrios

Full Name: Toonerville Rifa
Also Known As: Toonerville 13, TVR, TVR 13, TVRX3, The Ville
Founded: Late 1950s–1960s
Founding Location: Atwater Village, Los Angeles, California
Years Active: 1950s–Present
Territory: Atwater Village, South Glendale, Sunland-Tujunga
Ethnicity: Predominantly Mexican-American
Affiliation: Sureños
Prison Affiliation: Mexican Mafia
Identifiers: TVR, TVR 13, TVRX3, XIII
Rivals: Frogtown Rifa, Thee Rascals, The Avenues, Westside Locos (Glendale), Vineland Boys, Armenian Power, Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13)

Toonerville Rifa, commonly abbreviated as TVR and also known as Toonerville 13, is a predominantly Mexican-American street gang based in the Atwater Village neighborhood of Northeast Los Angeles. Its historic neighborhood extends into adjoining sections of South Glendale, with later branches established in Sunland and Tujunga. The gang identifies with the Sureños and uses the number 13 to represent its allegiance to the Mexican Mafia within the Southern California prison system.

History

Toonerville Rifa emerged in the Atwater Village neighborhood of Northeast Los Angeles during the post-World War II era. A historical overview prepared by the Glendale Police Department traces the gang’s roots to neighborhood youth groups active during the Zoot Suit era of the 1940s and developed into a traditional barrio gang during the 1950s and 1960s.

The gang took its name from “Toonerville,” a longtime nickname for the neighborhood surrounding the Los Angeles River and adjacent rail corridor. Residents had used the nickname since the 1920s, borrowing it from the Toonerville Folks comic strip and the Pacific Electric Red Cars that served the area. By the time the gang formed, Toonerville was already the established local name for the neighborhood.

Atwater Village developed during the early twentieth century along the Los Angeles River between Los Feliz and Glendale. Railroad lines, the Pacific Electric Railway, and nearby industrial employers shaped the neighborhood into a working-class community. At the same time, its location along the Los Angeles-Glendale border allowed the gang to recruit members from both cities while remaining a single barrio.

Early generations included the Callejeros and Aztecas, followed by the Latin Souls, Cut Downs and Midgets during the 1950s and 1960s. By the late 1970s, another generation became known as the Gangsters.

During the late 1960s and early 1970s, members expanded into portions of Glendale, where the Glendale Police historical overview states they became involved in drive-by shootings, assaults, homicides, robberies, and burglaries.

Around 1978, three members of the Guagorena family relocated to nearby Burbank, where they helped establish the Burbank Tres street gang. Around 1982, Toonerville split into Northside and Southside factions, with the Southern Pacific railroad tracks serving as the dividing line. Despite the split, both groups continued operating as Toonerville Rifa. During the early 1990s, the Dukes clique established a branch in Tujunga, extending the gang into the northeastern San Fernando Valley.

Territory

Toonerville’s original territory centered in Atwater Village near the Los Angeles-Glendale border. Its best-documented neighborhood lay north of Los Feliz Boulevard between San Fernando Road and the Los Angeles River.

Major streets associated with the neighborhood include San Fernando Road, Fletcher Drive, Verdugo Road, Broadway, Brunswick Avenue, Garden Avenue, Perlita Avenue, Bemis Street, and Hollydale Drive. Interstate 5 and State Route 2 border portions of the area, while the Los Angeles River and adjacent railroad corridor have long served as recognizable geographic boundaries separating Toonerville from neighboring communities.

Police reports, court records, and federal prosecutions consistently identified the area surrounding Atwater Village and the Glendale city line as the gang’s primary stronghold. Toonerville also maintained a branch in portions of Sunland-Tujunga.

Structure & Identity

Unlike many Los Angeles street gangs that eventually divided into multiple neighborhood sets, Toonerville generally retained a single organizational identity. Although leadership changed over the decades, the gang continued to operate under the same name rather than splitting into autonomous neighborhoods.

Court testimony described senior members, commonly referred to as shot callers, directing discipline within the gang while assigning lookouts to monitor entrances into the neighborhood. During periods of conflict, investigators reported that members used radios and later cellular telephones to warn others of approaching rivals or police activity.

Members commonly used the identifiers TVR, TVR 13, TVRX3, XIII and The Ville. Graffiti bearing these markings has appeared throughout Atwater Village and neighboring Glendale. Court testimony has also described tattoos incorporating TVR lettering, the number 13 and stylized trolley imagery.

Documented Incidents

2000 Ambush of LAPD Officers

On July 4, 2000, three Toonerville members attempted a retaliatory drive-by shooting before robbing a pedestrian who witnessed their actions. After Los Angeles Police Department officers attempted to stop the suspects, a pursuit led into Toonerville territory, where additional gang members blocked the street with a washing machine and a bicycle before opening fire on the pursuing officers. Prosecutors identified Timothy Joseph McGhee as one of the leaders of the ambush. McGhee was later convicted of two counts of attempted murder for the attack on Officers Thomas Baker and Carlos Langarica.

2008 Murder of Manuel Martin

On October 8, 2008, Manuel Martin, a member of the Mongols Motorcycle Club, was shot and killed while riding on the Interstate 210 and State Route 2 interchange in Glendale. Detectives identified a Toonerville member as the suspected shooter. The homicide led to a multi-agency investigation that expanded beyond the killing and uncovered evidence of narcotics trafficking, firearms offenses and other violent crimes involving gang members.

2009 Federal Drug Investigation

On July 9, 2009, approximately 400 federal and local law enforcement officers executed search and arrest warrants throughout Los Angeles County. Authorities arrested twenty alleged gang members and associates while recovering firearms, narcotics, and cash. Prosecutors filed charges that included murder, attempted murder, narcotics trafficking and weapons offenses.

2010–2015 Federal Racketeering Investigation

Beginning around 2010, imprisoned Mexican Mafia member Arnold “Arnie” Gonzales directed members of Toonerville Rifa, Frogtown Rifa and Thee Rascals to suspend longstanding rivalries and cooperate in narcotics trafficking throughout portions of Northeast Los Angeles.

Federal prosecutors alleged that Toonerville shot caller Manuel “Boxer” Vallejo helped coordinate the alliance, known as the New World Order or United Neighborhoods. According to prosecutors, the enterprise collected taxes from narcotics dealers, settled disputes between participating gangs and used violence to protect its operations. More than twenty defendants were ultimately charged with racketeering conspiracy, narcotics trafficking, firearms offenses and violent crimes. Vallejo was later sentenced to twenty-five years in federal prison.

Allies & Rivals

Frogtown Rifa and Thee Rascals have been Toonerville’s longest-running rivals, with decades of conflict centered along the Los Angeles River and neighboring sections of Northeast Los Angeles. The gang has also maintained rivalries with the Avenues, Westside Locos in Glendale, Vineland Boys, Armenian Power, and Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13).

Although these conflicts have periodically turned violent, rivalries with Frogtown Rifa and Thee Rascals were temporarily suspended after imprisoned Mexican Mafia members directed the gangs to cooperate through a racketeering enterprise known as the New World Order, also referred to by prosecutors as United Neighborhoods. Federal authorities alleged the alliance coordinated narcotics trafficking, collected taxes from drug dealers and resolved disputes among participating gangs.

The establishment of the Dukes clique in Tujunga also brought Toonerville into conflict with several gangs operating in the northeastern San Fernando Valley, expanding the gang’s rivalries beyond its traditional Northeast Los Angeles neighborhood.