Easter Sunday in Stanton: Shooting probe led to gambling house, about 50 detained

Juice Unlocked shared bystander video from Stanton just before noon on Easter Sunday, April 5, 2026, with a cover graphic calling it a "huge raid." The clip showed more than a dozen people sitting on a curb against a residential block wall while an Orange County sheriff's deputy stood over them, a sheriff's patrol SUV parked nearby.

At the time, nothing had been said publicly about what was happening. Three days later, the Orange County Sheriff's Department released details on a homicide investigation that began that morning in Stanton, and on an illegal gambling house investigators found along the way.

What the Sheriff's Department says

Deputies responded around 5:30 a.m. Sunday, April 5, to Main Street and Pacific Street after a report of a possible body, according to an April 8 news release. They found Anthony Lee Carlos, 37, of Fullerton, who had died of a gunshot wound.

Sheriff's homicide investigators arrested Jeffrey Lynn Clayton, 43, of Fullerton, late Tuesday, April 7, on suspicion of homicide and booked him into Orange County Jail, the department said. The two men appear to have known each other before the shooting, according to the release. Clayton has not been convicted and is presumed innocent; the release did not mention formal charges.

During the investigation, the department said, investigators located an illegal gambling house near Cerritos Avenue and Flower Avenue. About 50 people were detained there. Six were arrested on warrants unrelated to the shooting, and several illegal gambling machines were seized as evidence.

“This is like GTA real life, bro.”

What we can and cannot confirm

The release does not say when the gambling house was found or how it connects to the shooting, if at all. It does not say any of the people detained there had a role in Carlos' death.

The group detention in the video fits the department's account, but Juice Unlocked could not independently confirm the clip was filmed at the Cerritos and Flower location. The department said no further information would be released while the investigation continues.

Background

Stanton does not have its own police department. The Sheriff's Department has provided law enforcement services for the city since February 1988, which is why sheriff's deputies, not city officers, were on scene.

Have information?

The Sheriff's Department asks anyone with information to call (714) 647-7000. Anonymous tips can go to OC Crime Stoppers at 855-TIP-OCCS (855-847-6227).