---
category: City
summary: Largest city in California and the center of the crack cocaine explosion
  in South Central Los Angeles, fueled by cocaine supplied by Danilo Blandón's Contra-connected
  drug ring throughout the 1980s.
tags:
- Geography
- City
- United_States
- California
- 1980s
- Contra_War
- Dark_Alliance_Investigation
---

Los Angeles is the largest city in [California](/places/california/) and was the epicenter of the [crack](/concepts/crack-cocaine/) cocaine explosion in [South Central L.A.](/places/south-central-los-angeles/) during the 1980s, fueled by [cocaine](/concepts/cocaine/) supplied by [Danilo Blandón](/people/danilo-blandon/)'s Contra-connected trafficking network.[^1]

### Nicaraguan Exile Community

After the [Sandinista](/organizations/sandinistas/) revolution in 1979, thousands of [Nicaraguan](/places/nicaragua/) exiles settled in Los Angeles, particularly in the Northridge and East Los Angeles areas. Many were former supporters of the [Somoza](/people/anastasio-somoza/) regime who became involved in Contra fundraising. Blandón claimed he formed the first [FDN](/organizations/fdn/) chapter in Los Angeles in 1981. Attorney [Brad Brunon](/people/brad-brunon/) observed that former Somoza supporters "highly politicized individuals" were dealing cocaine in Los Angeles in the early 1980s, with "the only politics I was aware that they were involved with was this attempt to fund the Contra revolutionary insurgency."[^2]

### Blandón's Drug Empire

Blandón established his cocaine distribution ring in Los Angeles beginning in 1981, operating as [Norwin Meneses](/people/norwin-meneses/)'s representative. From Los Angeles, Blandón built the pipeline that connected Colombian cocaine sources to the street gangs of South Central, particularly through his relationship with ["Freeway" Ricky Ross](/people/ricky-ross/). Blandón moved from Northridge to [RIalto](/places/san-bernardino/) during the peak of his operations, then relocated to [Miami](/places/miami/) in 1987.[^3]

### Law Enforcement Response

The [LAPD](/organizations/lapd/) and [L.A. County Sheriff's Majors unit](/organizations/lasd-major-violators/) both investigated the Nicaraguan cocaine ring. [Sergeant Thomas Gordon](/people/thomas-gordon/) led the 1986 raid on Blandón's operation that uncovered connections to the FDN. The Freeway Rick Task Force was formed in January 1987 as a joint LAPD-Sheriff's operation targeting Ricky Ross.[[^4]

### Crack Market Origins

Ricky Ross's network, supplied entirely by Blandón, became the first major crack distribution system in Los Angeles. Ross's operation spread from South Central to cities nationwide, with [Crips](/organizations/crips/) gang members carrying the crack formula and Blandón's cocaine connections to every major urban market in the country.[^5]

[^1]: Webb, Gary. *Dark Alliance: The CIA, the Contras, and the Crack Cocaine Explosion.* Seven Stories Press, 1998. Prologue: "It was like they didn't want to know"
[^2]: Webb, Gary. *Dark Alliance: The CIA, the Contras, and the Crack Cocaine Explosion.* Seven Stories Press, 1998. Chapter 6: "They were doing their patriotic duty"
[^3]: Webb, Gary. *Dark Alliance: The CIA, the Contras, and the Crack Cocaine Explosion.* Seven Stories Press, 1998. Chapter 10: "Teach a man a craft and he's liable to practice it"
[^4]: Webb, Gary. *Dark Alliance: The CIA, the Contras, and the Crack Cocaine Explosion.* Seven Stories Press, 1998. Chapter 20: "It is a sensitive matter"
[^5]: Webb, Gary. *Dark Alliance: The CIA, the Contras, and the Crack Cocaine Explosion.* Seven Stories Press, 1998. Chapter 10: "Teach a man a craft and he's liable to practice it"