California Attorney General Rob Bonta appeared on KTLA 5 Morning News on Thursday and mentioned the Disaster Relief Task Force for the first time amid growing concerns about crime in the wake of the Los Angeles wildfires.
Bonta explained that there has been an increase in the number of crimes reported in connection with the fires, including looting, price gouging, fraud and deception, and that his office will begin prosecuting people for their crimes. did.
Because such a mission is a large-scale undertaking, the AG’s office on Thursday announced a special committee to investigate such reports.
But what does the task force do?
Bonta’s office described the task force as a “cross-departmental team of experts” with backgrounds across various parts of the Justice Department. These include the Law Enforcement Division, Special Prosecution Division, Cyber Crime Division, and Consumer Protection Division.
“The task force is working closely with local authorities, local police and local prosecutors,” the AG’s office said. “The Department of Justice has special agents on scene and is actively investigating leads obtained directly from complaints sent to the Department by victims and witnesses in the affected areas.”
The task force is investigating complaints that Bonta is involved in crimes that exploit victims of the wildfires.
He said hundreds of complaints about rent price gouging had already been received, and this was one of the issues the task force would tackle.
According to the AG’s office, “California law prohibits sellers from charging more than 10% more than the price they charged for the product before a state or local state of emergency was declared.” That’s what it means.
This law applies to both short-term and long-term rental properties.
For more information about the Department of Justice’s efforts and reporting crimes, visit this link for additional resources.
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