CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Dozens of gang members, firearms and kilos of drugs are off the street after a 26-week long operation led by the Gulf Coast Violent Offender Task Force, the U.S. Marshals Service said.
From April 7 to September 30, several law enforcement agencies came together for Operation Triple Beam to target documented gang members and violent offenders.
The operation resulted in the following:
- 351 overall arrests
- 92 gang members arrested
- 86 firearms seized
- 32.971 kilograms of narcotics seized
- $4,360,968 in U.S. currency seized
Of the total arrests, 92 were confirmed gang members. 11 individuals were arrested for homicide/capital murder, 74 for assault, 68 for weapons offenses, 21 for robbery, 135 for drug offenses, 28 for burglary, 29 for sex offenses, and five for arson.
During this operation, the Gulf Coast Violent Offenders Task Force and other agencies involved initially focused their efforts on warrant executions on members of established street and prison gangs in Nueces County, Aransas County, San Patricio County and surrounding areas who were wanted for aggravated offenses.
"As violent crime and gang violence continue to rise and plague our cities and counties, those of us in the law enforcement community must be ready and willing to engage,” said U.S. Marshal for the Southern District of Texas T. Michael O’Connor.
As the operation progressed, the focus shifted to known high-crime areas and violent fugitives with aggravated warrants, as well as street-level criminal activity conducted in these areas. Multiple gangs were targeted.
“The goal of Operation Triple Beam is to foster safer communities by providing immediate relief from gang-related violence by investigating and arresting fugitive gang members and the criminal organizations responsible for committing violent crimes," said O'Connor.
Law enforcement agencies that helped with the operation include the Corpus Christi Police Department; Corpus Christi Independent School District Police; Nueces County Sheriff’s Office; Texas Department of Public Safety; Texas Department of Criminal Justice-Office of Inspector General; Homeland Security Investigations; Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Drug Enforcement Administration; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
"I am extremely proud of all our law enforcement partners who have worked so diligently these past several months,” O'Connor said.
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