A criminal investigation was underway Tuesday at the burned Lineage Logistics warehouse in Boyle Heights.
Agents with California’s Department of Toxic Substances Control Criminal Investigations Bureau, a law-enforcement unit that investigates potential violations of the state’s hazardous-waste laws, served a search warrant at the site. Surveillance video showed law enforcement arriving around 7:30 a.m., and some remained on scene as of midday Tuesday.
An agent with the department confirmed that the Office of Criminal Investigations is the lead agency but declined to comment further. Several investigators with badges from the LA County District Attorney’s office were also present. The office later confirmed it assisted DTSC in serving the search warrant and is supporting the department’s ongoing investigation.
In a statement, Lineage — which operates cold-storage facilities around the world — said that it works collaboratively with various regulatory agencies.
“To be clear, we do not store hazardous chemicals or products in this facility. We store food. Further, the facility’s ammonia refrigeration system was safely pumped out shortly after the fire began and before the fire reached the refrigeration system. The ammonia was subsequently removed from the site. The Los Angeles Fire Department reported no ammonia was detected during its response, and subsequent environmental monitoring has consistently shown results within normal levels for the neighborhood and no ammonia concentrations above health-based action levels. We have shared relevant testing and monitoring information on our website and with regulatory agencies and will continue to do so,” the statement said.
In the weeks after the fire, community testing as well as data from Lineage and the South Coast Air Quality Management District showed elevated levels of ammonia near the warehouse. Community members found the results alarming, though Lineage and regulators stressed the levels didn’t meet the threshold to take action to protect public health.
Last week, Eastside Padres held a press conference outside the warehouse, calling on the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office to open a criminal investigation of the warehouse fire after the Los Angeles Fire Department reported that the cause of the fire could not be determined.
A person who works at the facility said the operation started earlier Tuesday morning. Employees initially believed Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were involved, but soon found they were not.
Anna Rivas works at Ciclon Pallets across the street from the Lineage parking lot where agents served the search warrant. A man driving a truck and a large trailer had to expertly back into her garage to pick up a load of pallets, dodging the law enforcement vehicles parked nearby.
The business’s surveillance cameras captured a police vehicle with lights and siren pulling up to the facility at about 7:30 a.m., with about 20 unmarked vehicles approaching soon after and entering the parking lot or stopping to block the entrance.
Rivas said the pallet company had to shut down for about a month and a half around the time of the fire, citing respiratory problems for workers and a loss of business.
“We thought we finally had our space back to do our work,” Rivas said. “But no, here we go again.”
She said the police did not question her or her colleagues, and she added she hopes the neighborhood gets the justice it deserves after months of disruption related to the fire.
mark! Lopez with East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice said that following the criminal investigation and lawsuits filed by community groups, he wants to see Lineage held accountable for the issues it has caused to residents’ health and homes.
“We don’t want Lineage to kind of be let off the hook. We don’t want to see, you know, a settlement that’ll kind of allow them to escape real accountability, which is kind of what we saw with Exide,” Lopez said.
Exide Technologies in 2015 closed its recycling plant that contaminated Eastside communities with lead and other materials. A bankruptcy court in 2020 allowed it to abandon the plant, leaving remaining cleanup costs to be covered by California taxpayers.
“We’ve kind of learned that lesson that sometimes these companies get off really easy, and we want to make sure that that doesn’t happen with Lineage,” Lopez said.
Salomón Zavala, an attorney representing families affected by the fire who are pursuing civil cases, welcomed the potential accountability of a criminal investigation.
“A criminal investigation is separate from our civil work, but the principle of accountability is the same. Our work is not finished until every family, worker, and small business that was harmed is made whole,” he said in a statement. “No one is above the law. And no one in these neighborhoods is beneath its protection.”
In a statement, Councilmember Ysabel Jurado said she welcomed the investigation “as a positive step toward the transparency and answers Boyle Heights residents deserve.”
“This community has lived with the consequences of the Lineage warehouse fire for months. Residents deserve to know what happened, what risks remain, and who must be held accountable.”
“Investigators must be able to follow the evidence wherever it leads, and their findings should help give residents the information they need about their health, safety, and the future of this site. I will continue pushing for those answers, a safe and complete cleanup, and accountability for any violations uncovered. Boyle Heights should not be left to shoulder the consequences of this disaster.”
The office of Mayor Karen Bass also acknowledged the investigation, stating:
“The residents of Boyle Heights and East LA deserve environmental justice and corporate accountability. Mayor Bass has been working with many agencies to protect this community. In her emergency executive order, Mayor Bass called for the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) to investigate and pursue enforcement action at the Lineage warehouse.”
The fire at the cold storage warehouse broke out on June 17 and burned for eight days. The fire and cleanup of millions of pounds of rotting food caused a flood of issues for residents living in Boyle Heights, East LA and surrounding communities, including an infestation of flies and pests, nausea and headaches, higher utility bills and other health concerns.
The Los Angeles Fire Department could not determine the cause of the fire but said solar panels could not be ruled out as an ignition and fuel source.
