'Operation Trident': DC leaders announce arrests of 48 individuals in 3-day sting targeting violent offenders
48 fugitives arrested in Operation Trident in DC
As crime in the nation's capital continues to rise, the chief of police, and federal agencies are working to take violent offenders off the street. In a 3-day period, that ended Thursday, dozens of fugitives were arrested across the District. FOX 5'S Nana-Sentuo Bonsu reports from Northeast with more on the operation.
WASHINGTON - D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and law enforcement leaders announced the arrests of 48 individuals in a three-day operation targeting violent offenders with outstanding warrants Thursday.
Officials say "Operation Trident" was a multi-agency effort that took place from Oct. 3-Oct. 5. The Metropolitan Police Department, U.S. Marshals Service, Federal Bureau of Investigation Washington Field Office, and Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency (CSOSA) worked together to apprehend the wanted individuals, many of whom were on supervised release or probation for other offenses.
"As a city, we know we are seeing juveniles and young adults involved in crimes at a rate that is unacceptable. We are also seeing far too many people on court-ordered supervision who are re-offending. This has been a major concern of ours," Bowser said
The collaborative operation focused on bringing in wanted criminals who had histories relating to narcotics, firearms, crimes of violence, gang activity or sexual offenses.
The 48 arrests led to the closure of 72 warrants and 24 additional charges were brought against the offenders.
According to MPD, of the warrants, 19 were for failure to appear, 33 were bench warrants, nine were fugitive from justice, two were federal warrants, seven were for parole violations, two were for probation violations and three were for firearms, which were seized. Some arrestees were charged with multiple counts for active warrants.
"Clearly, there is no more important issue to us in the District of Columbia than to keep our city safe and I want to be clear that we’re using every tool at our disposal to drive down crime and to hold people accountable who are committing crime," Bowser said.
The announcement comes as District leaders face tough questions about how they plan to curb the rising crime. There have been 216 homicides in D.C. this year — a 38% increase from 2022. Overall violent crime is up 40% and acting Police Chief Pamela Smith says this was one step forward in combating what some say is a siege on the city.
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"Violent crime within the District is predominantly driven by a small number of individuals," said Acting Chief Pamela A. Smith. "This week’s operation was a significant step towards combating this violence and bringing peace back to our neighborhoods."
Smith says her focus has been on building relationships within the community, with other law enforcement agencies and criminal justice partners including the U.S. Attorney’s Office to ensure that violent offenders and re-offenders are apprehended and prosecuted.
"We are incredibly grateful to our law enforcement partners’ concerted efforts to arrest individuals who have outstanding warrants, the bulk of which were issued because these individuals violated the terms of their pretrial release or probation," said U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves said. "In several of these arrests, firearms were recovered from the person or close by the person, providing more evidence of what we already know: people are arming themselves while they are under supervision. This is unacceptable and must be addressed."
Both Smith and Bowser have repeated the message that they want to get guns off the streets in D.C.
And on Wednesday, Bowser highlighted an issue Smith has been speaking about more recently — seeing more disputes and more crew disputes in the District escalating to gun violence. She also called on the D.C. council to make emergency public safety legislation passed this summer permanent.
During Thursday’s news conference, she once again talked about the Safer, Stronger DC Legislation, which she says is meant to address the "gaps" in the public safety ecosystem. Among many things, the act increases penalties for illegal gun possession and gives the courts more discretion to determine who should be held pre-trial — including defendants previously convicted of a violent crime while they await trial for a new violent crime.
Bowser also announced a new initiative with the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Public Safety and Justice to launch the $8.5 million Safe Passage, Safe Blocks Program which will help students living in high-priority areas with commuting to school safely.
"Our young people deserve to feel safe and supported, and that includes before, during, and after school. Our Safe Passage, Safe Blocks program is part of our commitment to youth safety," said Bowser said in a statement.
The mayor says the efforts don’t end here, adding that city leaders and law enforcement are working tirelessly to create a safer D.C.
"There are operations ongoing all day every day," Bowser said. "There’s always this collaborative activity that’s meant to keep our community safe."