FBI, SWAT raid YouTube star’s mansion
Weapons were found on influencer Jake Paul’s Calabasas property, sources say.
An Arizona melee in May prompts an FBI search of the Calabasas mansion owned by inf luencer Jake Paul.
A SWAT team was on hand Wednesday as the FBI served a search warrant at the Calabasas mansion of controversial YouTube influencer Jake Paul, sources confirmed to The Times.
The FBI said the raid was tied to an incident in May at an Arizona shopping mall, where police say a protest against police brutality developed into a riot. Search warrants were also served in Nevada and Arizona.
“The FBI is executing a federal search warrant at a residence in Calabasas in connection with an ongoing investigation. The affidavit in support of the search warrant has been sealed by a judge and I am, therefore, prohibited from commenting as to the nature of the investigation. No arrests are planned,” an FBI representative said in a statement.
Details about the investigation were not released, but sources said the early morning raid was related to a May 30 riot at an Arizona mall where police said Paul was present.
A SWAT team was used to enter Paul’s home, law enforcement sources said. Agents trained to make high-risk entries are used when intelligence suggests there are weapons or people who authorities believe could become violent on the premises.
Sources said multiple firearms were found on the property. Video showed Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies carrying at least five long guns to a cruiser parked in front of the mansion and securing the weapons inside the vehicle.
After the initial search, federal agents left Paul’s home in a procession of vehicles, including an armored SWAT truck, a dark van and a truck with several camouflage-dressed agents riding in the back.
Paul has had run-ins with law enforcement in the past.
In June, Arizona police said he would face misdemeanor charges following the disturbance at the mall. Paul, 23, was identified as a participant in the melee at Scottsdale Fashion Square and was charged with criminal trespass and unlawful assembly, the Scottsdale Police Department said in a statement at the time.
Police determined that “Paul was present after the protest was declared an unlawful assembly and the rioters were urged to leave the area by police.” He entered and remained inside the mall when it was closed, police said.
Paul said he was merely trying to find people protesting the death of George Floyd, according to the Associated Press.
But on Wednesday, officials in Arizona said they were dropping all charges against Paul, and two other men — Arman Izadi and Andrew Leon — in connection with the mall disturbance. Scottsdale Police Sgt. Ben Hoster said that a federal investigation is being conducted and that Scottsdale police and the city attorney’s office are coordinating with the U.S. attorney’s office and the FBI on the case.
Scottsdale police say the riot resulted in burglaries and thefts inside the large mall. Paul has denied being involved in the disturbance but says he did film it.