The prosecutor revealed the operation was being funded by notorious street gang MS-13 in order to place Montenegro in office so they could have an ally in the city.
Carlos Montenegro and Marco Arevalo pleaded not guilty to numerous charges relating to the fraud, including “eight counts of voter fraud, four counts of procuring and offering a false or forged instrument, and four misdemeanor counts of interference with a prompt transfer of a completed affidavit.”
Montenegro, who was running for mayor of Hawthorne, set up what appears to be a fake non-profit group, “Homeless Votes Matter” in July.
Montenegro and his accomplices began sending out the voter registration applications in July and continued up until October when election officials flagged a suspicious amount of ballots registered at the same address.
The prosecutor revealed the operation was being funded by notorious street gang MS-13 in order to place Montenegro in office so they could have an ally in the city.
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