A multi-agency operation in Dallas led to the arrest of eight alleged gang members who were in possession of guns, drugs, money, and even a reptilian accomplice. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF) spearheaded the investigation, culminating in the execution of "Operation Blue Laces" in South Dallas on Monday.
Chad Meacham, the Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas, announced that the operation resulted in the arrest of eight alleged members of the 42 Oakland Crips street gang. During the raid, agents seized 14 firearms, over a kilogram of methamphetamine pills, oxycodone, hydrocodone, codeine, alprazolam, marijuana, hash, and more than $47,000 in cash. Investigators also confiscated six vehicles, multiple pieces of Crips-themed jewelry, and a caiman alligator. With the assistance of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the alligator was relocated to the Dallas Zoo.
Those arrested include Kendrick Jamal Young, Christopher Jamiel Love, Alex Jerome Bowman, Victor Scott Wingham, Joshua Jimond Wheatley, Travion Williams, Jihadd Thies Gorree Thomas, and Jamarian Augustus Hewitt. Young, Love, Bowman, Wingham, and Wheatley were charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances. Young, Love, and Hewitt also face charges of being a felon in possession of a firearm and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. Hewitt was additionally charged with possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance and using a cellphone to facilitate a drug felony. Williams and Thomas were charged with carjacking and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence.
During a detention hearing on Friday, prosecutors alleged that the defendants were involved in daily drug dealing at a location known as the "Dead End". Evidence presented suggested that several gang members used text messages to warn each other about law enforcement raids and sent "young people" to search for missing drugs afterward. Prosecutors also claimed that the suspects resumed drug dealing immediately after the raids.
According to Meacham’s office, many of the suspects have extensive criminal histories involving drugs and firearms.
The operation was a collaborative effort involving the ATF, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Dallas Field Division, the Dallas Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations, the U.S. Marshals Service, the IRS Criminal Investigative Division, the Texas Department of Public Safety, the Kaufman County Sheriff’s Office, and the Texas Game Wardens.
Greg Wehner, a breaking news reporter for Fox News Digital, contributed to this report. Story tips and ideas can be sent to [email protected] and on Twitter @GregWehner.
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