70 arrested in Indiana as part of nationwide operation
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — U.S. Marshals say they arrested 7,100 fugitives as part of Operation Violence Reduction. 70 of those arrested were local arrests of high value fugitives.
Operation VR7 was part of a six-week long effort to apprehend fugitives nationwide especially in hot spot regional gang activity areas. VR7 helped local law enforcement agencies, who would not otherwise have the resources get criminals off their streets.
According to a release sent out by the United States Marshals Service, seven fugitives were arrested for murder, two for kidnapping, 11 for assaults, 37 for drug related offenses, eight for robbery and five for gun crimes in Indiana’s southern counties ranging from Howard County to south of the Ohio River.
Police say special attention was also given to the New Albany and surrounding areas.
The arrests were announced on Thursday by U. S. Marshals Service Director Stacia Hylton in Camden, NJ. Hylton said the goal was to arrest the “worst of the worst.” Fugitives had an average of eight prior criminal violations and were around 36 years old, Task Force Supervisor John Beeman said during the press conference.
The Indiana State Police, Delaware, Floyd, Henry, Knox, Marion and Scott County police and sheriff’s agencies along with the Indianapolis Metropolitan and New Albany Police Departments assisted with the arrests.
