Huntington Park Councilmember Arturo Flores accused of serious sexual misconduct

Another bombshell hit the City of Huntington Park with serious sexual allegations made against Councilman Arturo Flores. Over the weekend, social media sites shared information about a restraining order against Flores for attempted sexual assault involving a USC student.

The person seeking protection, identified as Fatima Rodriguez-Ortiz, filed the order against Flores at the Los Angeles Superior Court on Dec. 18, 2025, but it was not made public until Friday by The Metro Watch, a Facebook page dedicated to exposing government-related issues. 

Rodriguez-Ortiz and Flores attended the USC Price Networking Night at the USC Hotel on Nov. 13, 2025.

Rodriguez-Ortiz is expected to graduate from USC this year, but according to the Metro Watch, Flores was suspended from USC due to the gravity of the charges. 

CALÓ News contacted USC to confirm this information, but they have not replied at the time of publication.

 After the networking event, Rodriguez-Ortiz went with friends to the Rock and Reilly’s restaurant and bar at the USC Village, where she met Flores. 

“From the start, his personality felt very dominant, which made me uncomfortable,” Rodriguez-Ortiz said. 

She then proceeded to explain how, after talking for a while and getting a drink, Flores let her know he was the mayor of Huntington Park. When she decided to leave, Flores followed her to the parking lot where the sexual assault incident occurred. 

Rodriguez-Ortiz’s personal statement described in detail how Flores convinced her to get into his car and once inside, he started touching her inappropriately.

“I felt grossed out and deeply uncomfortable,” she said. “At that point, I decided to open the car door and get out.”

She said Flores followed her to her house. She was afraid of him finding out where she lives, so she parked two blocks away and waited until he left.

“When I finally went inside my home, he called me and began saying disturbing things, asking when I would invite him over and graphically describing what had happened in the car and convincing me that I liked it,” she said. 

Before hanging up, Flores told her, “I trust you won’t say anything because my reputation is on the line.”

Rodriguez-Ortiz ends her statement saying she has Instagram messages and call logs that document their interaction. She also hopes the parking cameras in the Village could have captured them walking to the car. 

CALÓ News has contacted Rodriguez-Ortiz and Flores, but has not received a response.

Ongoing controversies

On Jan. 13, 2025, the City of Huntington Park announced that Flores was stepping down as the mayor to focus on an “attempted recall.” No further details were provided at the time. It is unknown if the City was aware at that time of the restraining order. 

On Monday, the City of Huntington Park sent CALÓ News a statement saying they are aware of the report and the investigation that is being conducted by the Los Angeles Police Department. 

“At this time, the City will not comment on allegations related to an ongoing law enforcement matter. The reported incident did not arise from City operations, City business or any official action by the City,” reads the statement. “The City respects the investigative process and will allow that process to move forward without interference or speculation.” 

While the issue is not included in the agenda for the public meeting on Tuesday, it is expected that the topic will be brought up during public comment. 

The Metro Watch said residents of Huntington Park are planning to attend the meeting and will demand that Flores resign from his councilmember role. They also criticized the council members and the Mayor for their lack of action in response to these allegations.

In the past, the city has been involved in other scandals like “Operation dirty pond” where the D.A. served the city with search warrants for the potential misuse of millions of dollars. The investigation still continues. 

There is also the scandal of former Councilwoman Esmeralda Castillo, whose seat was vacated in Feb. 2025 after an investigation showed she lived in South Gate and not in Huntington Park. According to municipal code § 2-9.02(a), council members must reside within the jurisdiction they serve.