WEST HOLLYWOOD—On Tuesday, April 7, Luca Scalisi, 59, the chief financial officer of Del Records, was sentenced by a Downtown Los Angeles federal judge for his role in Del Records’ business dealings with a Mexican Criminal Cartel. Scalisi was sentenced to spend eight months in federal prison.

According to the reporting done by WeHo Times, Scalisi is required to pay a $15,000 fine.  Mexican concert promoter Jesús Pérez Alvear, who headed a company named Gallistica Diamante Perez, along with his company, was identified as being involved in drug trafficking by the United States Treasury Department.

This involvement took the form of a musician, contracted to Del Entertainment, performing at concerts promoted by Jesús Pérez Alvear.

Per a press release issued by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California, on August 15, 2025, José Ángel Del Villar, the head of both Del Records and Del Entertainment Inc., Alvear laundered money for both the Los Cuinis drug trafficking organization and the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación.

Del Villar and Del Entertainment Inc were found guilty on 10 counts of violating the Kingpin Act, which allows the Department of the Treasury to place sanctions on narcotics traffickers and cartels, and also prevents U.S. companies from doing business with them. Del Villar and his entertainment company was also found guilty of committing one count of violating the Kingpin Act. It took the form of conspiring to engage in transaction with a specially designated narcotics traffickers in violation of the Kingpin Act.

In April 2018, the defendants did business with Jesús Pérez Alvear, a.k.a. “Chucho,” of Guadalajara, Mexico, a music promoter who controlled Gallistica Diamante, a.k.a. Ticket Premier. Pérez promoted concerts for Del Entertainment in Mexico until March 2019.

The U.S. Treasury Department listed Pérez and his company as “specially designated narcotics traffickers” under the Kingpin Act on April 6, 2018, after concluding he facilitated money laundering for the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) and the Los Cuinis drug trafficking organization. The Kingpin Act prevents people in the United States from conducting business with sanctioned persons and entities.

On May 23, 2025, Scalisi pled guilty to committing one count of conspiracy to do a transaction with a specially designated narcotics trafficker. The prosecution was part of Operation Take Back America.

Canyon News reached out to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California, for comment on the sentencing of Scalisi and the prosecution that lead to the sentencing, who indicated they had no comment.

 

By Daniel Diquinzio

BEVERLY HILLS—At 11:57 p.m. on Thursday, April 9, the Beverly Hills Police Department announced via a post on its Facebook page that along with the Tulare County Sheriff, they are mourning the death of Deputy Randy Hoppert. Deputy Randy Hoppert was killed in the line of duty on Thursday morning.

According to the post, Deputy Randy Hoppert was killed during a shooting that occurred close to 10:20 a.m. Tulare County Sheriff’s deputies were serving an eviction notice to a person who lived in the area of Newcomb and Grand in Porterville.  While they were doing so, David Morales, 59, fired at the deputies. Deputy Hoppert was hit and taken to a hospital for medical treatment but later died.

Just before 6 p.m. Morales was killed by deputies of the Kern County Sheriff’s Office who drove over David Morales, in a SWAT vehicle.

The Beverly Hills Police Department asks the citizens of Beverly Hills to pray for the family of Deputy Randy Hoppert.

 

By Daniel Diquinzio

MALIBU—At 3:23 p.m. on Friday, April 10, the city of Malibu posted on its Facebook page that stinging jellyfish have been spotted in the water off the beaches in Malibu as well as Los Angeles County. This includes Malibu Surfrider Beach.

According to the post, the city learned of the presence of the jellyfish after several surfers reported being stung at Malibu Surfrider Beach. The sting of these jellyfish is non-lethal.

The Los Angeles County Lifeguard Division wants Malibu citizens to be careful on the beaches and in the water, and to watch out for both jellyfish and their detached tentacles.  In addition, the Office of Public Safety wants Malibu residents to be aware of the side effects of a jellyfish sting.  This includes rashes, cramps, fever, and pain.

According to the post, if a person is stung by a jellyfish, they are to remove the tentacles from their skin but should not touch the skin.  They should rinse out the spot where they were stung with ocean water and then go to a lifeguard station to receive first aid.

If a person has a severe reaction after being stung by a stingray, they should call 911. Foror more information about jellyfish and stingrays visit the following website.

 

By Daniel Diquinzio

SANTA MONICA—On April 12, commentator, YouTuber, and TikTok creator, Michael McWhorter, known as @Tizzyent, requests the public’s assistance identifying a woman who attacked a young woman on the e-train in Santa Monica. The entire clip can be seen below: The victim reported that she was sitting alone by the window when an unknown woman hit another woman in the head, knocking her unconscious. The victim begged bystanders to come to her aid. The victim noted she never seen the attacker before. “The victim said she stared at me with so much hate, as if she wanted to kill me,” she said. The victim was still coming forward when the victim swore at her. The perpetrator turned and walked away. The victim did say that some people stayed with her until the police arrived. @Tizzyent asks that anyone who recognizes the attacker contact the Santa Monica Police Department. Canyon News reached out to SMPD for comment about the incident but didn’t hear back in time for print.   By Sharon

WEST HOLLYWOOD—Around 8:45 p.m. on Thursday, April 9, deputies from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department West Hollywood Sheriff Station arrived at a building in the 1000 block of North Vista Street in response to a report of an assault conducted with a deadly weapon.

According to the report issued by myNewsLA.com, after arriving on the scene, deputies learned that a person had been shot while out on the balcony.  Deputies took the victim to a hospital for medical attention.

The victim’s name has not been released by authorities or their current condition. The LASD West Hollywood Sheriff’s Station is still investigating the case.

 

By Daniel Diquinzio

PACIFIC PALISADES—On Wednesday, April 8, Jasveen Sangha, 42, who is known as the Ketamine Queen who sold the ketamine that led to an overdose by the late actor Matthew Perry was sentenced by United States District Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett. Sangha lives in North Hollywood and holds dual citizenship in the United Kingdom and the United States.

Per the press release issued by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California, Sangha was sentenced to 180 months in federal prison.  She pleaded guilty in September 2025.  She pleaded guilty to three counts of distribution of ketamine.  She also pleaded guilty to one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death or serious bodily injury. She also pleaded guilty to one count of maintaining a drug-involved premises.

Jasveen Sangha, along with Erik Fleming sold ketamine to Kenneth Iwamasa, who was the personal assistant of the late actor Matthew Perry, who starred in the sitcom “Friends,” the remake of “The Odd Couple” and films like,  “The Ron Clark Story,” and “The Whole Nine Yards” and its sequel, and who was injected 51 times with ketamine.

Sangha was sentenced not just for supplying the ketamine that caused Perry to overdose but for her long-term drug dealing.   This included selling four vials of ketamine to Cody McLaury in 2019.  McLaury died later that day as a result of a drug overdose.  According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California, Sagnha also used her home in North Hollywood as a place from which she not only sold drugs such as methamphetamine and ketamine, but she also used her home as the place from which the drugs were packaged and shipped, which she started years ago.

Jasveen Sangha was not the only person to be sentenced for the death of Matthew Perry.  Two other defendants were also sentenced which included Salvador Plasencia, who lives in Santa Monica and who also supplied drugs to Matthew Perry, and Mark Chavez, who lives in San Diego, and who operated the drug clinic that Plasencia brought drugs to give to Perry.

Plasencia pleaded guilty in July 2025 to four counts of distributing ketamine and is currently serving 30 months in prison.  He also lost his license to practice medicine in California back in September of 2025.

Chavez pleaded guilty in October 2024.  According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine.  His sentence includes serving three years of probation.  It also includes performing 300 hours of community service and doing 8 months of home detention.

In August 2024, both Erik Fleming and Kenneth Iwamasa pleaded guilty to federal narcotics charges. They will be sentenced for their role in the death of Matthew Perry.

The case is being prosecuted by two different prosecutors which includes Assistant U.S. Attorney Haoxiaohan H. Cai, who works in the Major Frauds Section, and Ian V. Yanniello of the National Security Division.

Canyon News reached out to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California for comment on the sentencing of Jasveen Sangha and the sentencing of Salvador Plasencia and Mark Chavez but did not receive any comment on the case.

 

By Daniel Diquinzio

SANTA MONICA—On April 7, an unhoused woman, later identified as Connie Arreola, 40, was arrested on charged with suspicion of animal cruelty after Santa Monica Police Department (SMPD) officers responded to a call of a woman assaulting her dog until it yelped in pain. Officers arriving at the scene on Main Street near Pico Boulevard arrested Arreola and took her into custody. SMPD Animal Control was called to pick up the dog and take him to the vet to be evaluated. According to the veterinarian the three-month-old puppy had a broken leg. Kann California Law Group (KCLG) explains the charges for animal cruelty on their webpage. “In sum, to be guilty of violating the Animal Cruelty law under CPC §597(a), you must, hurt or kill a living animal and act maliciously.” Kann goes on to explain that for a person to be convicted under CPC §597(a), the prosecutor must prove beyond reasonable doubt that an act was committed involving the maiming, mutilation, torturing or killing a living animal and that act was malicious. Canyon News reached out to Santa Monica Police Department Lt. Lewis Gilmour for a statement. His statement confirmed the aforementioned details.  In addition, Lt. Gilmour indicated that the injured  puppy remains in the care of the veterinarian.   By Sharon

BEVERLY HILLS—On Tuesday, April 7, the Beverly Hills Police Department announced on its Facebook page that it would celebrate Autism Awareness Month.

According to a post, some of the department’s uniformed officers will be wearing special patches to promote understanding of autism, as well as acceptance of people who are autistic.

In addition, the citizens of Beverly Hills can also purchase one of the patches that sell for $10.

Anyone who is interested can contact Sergeant Alatorre of the Beverly Hills Police Department Public Relations Unit whose email is: aalatorre@beverlyhills.org.

 

By Daniel Diquinzio

SANTA MONICA—On April 8, California Governor Gavin Newsom issued a press release announcing $145.5 million in funding through the Homeless, Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) program to prevent and address California’s homelessness. The funding does not include Los Angeles County. The following areas have been identified to be the recipients of Newsom’s latest homeless initiative. -$1.4 million is allocated to Lake County and the Lake County Continuum of Care (LCCoC). -$3.5 million is allocated to be divided between the cities of Irvine, and the Santa Ana-Anaheim-Orange County Continuum of Care (CoC). -$20.4 million — City of Riverside and the Riverside County CoC. -$31.7 million — City of Sacramento, and the Sacramento CoC. -$49.9 million — City of San Jose and the San Jose-Santa Clara CoC. -Almost $4.1 million — Solano-Vallejo CoC. -Over $2.2 million — Yolo-Davis-Woodland County CoC. -$600,000 — Yuba County. Earlier this year, $419 million was allocated to be divided between the areas of Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Francisco, indicates the California Governor’s website, with $159.3 million was awarded to “20 California regions.” A February 2026 report via the California Legislative Analyst’s Office 2025-2026 overview indicated that Governor Newsom spent $37 billion on homelessness since becoming Governor in 2019. The state spent an additional $900 million on homeless encampment removal and cleanup. California Homelessness continues to grow. According to the Los Angeles Almanac there is little difference in the demographics of homelessness between 2019 when Newsom took office and 2025 statistics. Los Angeles County listed 58,936 homeless/unhoused individuals in 2019 and 73,308 in 2025. Several cities included in the coverage area for Canyon News in the report are: -Beverly Hills in 2019 counted 19 homeless individuals and 17 in 2025. -Malibu had 154 in 2019 and 21 in the 2025 count. -Santa Monica had 1,002 in 2019 with 677 reported in 2025. -West Hollywood had 131 unhoused in 2019 and 79 in 2025. The COVID-19 pandemic may have skewed numbers due to mandatory shutdowns. On March 19, 2020, California was the first state to employ a state-wide stay at home mandate. According to the Public Policy Institute of California, California’s population has shown little growth in 25 years. A total of 150,000 left the state in 2019 and 220,000 in 2020. Reports indicate that close to 10 million people left California between 2010 and 2024. Key Wealth Migration Data from early 2026 indicates that 57,000 millionaires have left the state of California for other destinations related to Governor Newsom’s proposed Wealth Tax. This includes entire businesses such as Oracle, Chevron, Tesla, and SpaceX.   By Sharon

WEST HOLLYWOOD—At 2 p.m. on Thursday, April 8, the city of West Hollywood announced on its Facebook page that it would be celebrating Food Day.

According to the post, the event will take place on Sunday, April 12, at Plummer Park located at 7377 Santa Monica Boulevard. Food Day will run from 11 a.m. to 5 P.M.

The purpose of the event is to celebrate sustainability and a healthier and cleaner future.  In addition, according to this post, plant-based food will be served at the food court during Food Day. There will be panels about sustainability and events for children to participate in, along with environmentally friendly vendors.

Sunday, April 12 was selected for Food Day because it falls during Los Angeles Climate Week and Earth Month. Food Day is being sponsored by the city West Hollywood and the Plant Based Treaty Present.

 

By Daniel Diquinzio