PASADENA (CBS) — Dozens of law enforcement officers from south of the border were in the Southland on Monday to train with local police on combating international gang crimes.

KNX 1070′s Vytas Safronikas reports on the collaboration between American and Central American law enforcement authorities in Pasadena.

The Central American Law Enforcement Exchange (CALEE) features a week-long training class made up of about 30 officers from the U.S., El Salvador, Panama, Costa Rica, Honduras and other countries.

Officials with the Federal Bureau of Investigations said Los Angeles stands to benefit from the collaboration.

“There’s about 450 to 500 gangs here in Los Angeles…with MS-13 and 18th Street there’s somewhere between 5,000 and 7,000 gang members,” said FBI Special Agent Robert Clark.

“Not only are you dealing with narcotics, you have the extortion factor, you have kidnapping, you have human trafficking,” said LAPD Lt. Natalie Cortez.