A man who once worked for a nonprofit organization that offers services to homeless people was arrested Thursday on a federal drug charge.
Federal authorities accuse Christopher Barret Johnson, 42, of possessing fentanyl when police pulled him over while he drove a BMW near MacArthur Park earlier this month.
Johnson, a Culver City resident, is charged in a criminal complaint with possession with intent to distribute fentanyl. Court records did not list a lawyer for Johnson.
According to the U.S. attorney’s office in L.A., Johnson was affiliated with People Assisting the Homeless, a nationwide nonprofit group that does street outreach, offering people interim and permanent housing.
Tyler Renner, PATH’s media director, said in a statement that Johnson’s employment with the organization ended last year, on Sept. 16.
“As an organization dedicated to ending homelessness and protecting vulnerable communities, PATH is outraged and deeply disturbed that an individual would falsely represent themselves as a current employee,” Renner said.
Renner added that “any employee who does not abide by our code of conduct, or who is found to be participating in unethical or illegal activity, can no longer be employed by our statewide organization.”
According to Renner, PATH does not have any current contracts or services covering the MacArthur Park area. The last services provided in that area were outreach services, which he said ended in June 2024.
The organization rebutted claims by the U.S. attorney’s office that PATH also serves as a vendor distributing syringes in MacArthur Park, saying that service is provided only in another area.
“PATH’s services are trauma-informed and our teams work diligently to connect individuals with substance use treatment, mental health care, and physical health services that support long-term stability and self-sufficiency,” Renner said.
Los Angeles police officers were patrolling the park around 10:20 p.m. May 5 when Johnson abruptly conducted a U-turn in front of them, according to an affidavit filed with the complaint.
The officers stopped the BMW, which lacked a front license plate, according to the affidavit. Authorities said Johnson was the sole occupant and “appeared very nervous.”
According to the affidavit, an officer observed a plastic baggie containing methamphetamine on the car’s central console and saw two knives in Johnson’s waistband.
After ordering Johnson from the car, authorities said, the officers conducted a pat-down search and found a plastic baggie of meth in Johnson’s left front pocket. After searching the BMW, officers found a backpack that contained more baggies of meth and fentanyl, along with cash and a digital scale that had fentanyl residue on it, according to the affidavit.
Officers also found a dish soap container with additional plastic baggies holding fentanyl, the court records show. The BMW’s center console also contained cash and a large amount of baggies, authorities said.
Authorities said a lab analysis confirmed that the seized drugs included at least 142 grams of a substance that contained fentanyl and nearly 46 grams of meth.
According to the affidavit, when officers questioned Johnson he acknowledged there were drugs inside his car, but said they belonged to a woman who used the moniker “Red,” and claimed he was only holding on to them for safekeeping.
If convicted, Johnson would face a minimum of five years in prison and up to 40 years.
MacArthur Park has been the focus of local and federal law enforcement operations in recent months.
First Assistant U.S. Atty. Bill Essayli posted a picture of Johnson’s business card on X, which identified him as a substance use disorder specialist.
“Residents and businesses in MacArthur Park and elsewhere have long complained about the wisdom of distributing syringes to homeless drug addicts where law-abiding citizens live and work,” Essayli said on X. “They call these policies ‘harm reduction.’ I consider them ‘harm enabling.’ Giving drug-addicted users needles to shoot up meth and fentanyl is never a good idea.”
Proponents of harm reduction work point to studies that have shown offering clean needles and other supplies can significantly reduce the spread of diseases such as HIV and hepatitis.
Earlier this month, federal authorities arrested more than a dozen people as part of a sweep targeting what authorities called an “open-air drug market.” In March, federal authorities arrested a dozen members and associates of the 18th Street gang on indictments alleging murder, extortion and drug trafficking.
