Using an April drive-by shooting that injured three in the Old Town neighborhood as an impetus, Chicago police announced raids that netted dozens of drug- and gun-related arrests that authorities hope will tamp down Memorial Day weekend violence.
The arrests follow the April 11 shooting of two 12-year-old boys on spring break and a man in his 60s in the 1400 block of North Sedgwick Street. The suspected gunman in that case, a participant in a violent neighborhood drug feud, was aiming at two gang rivals standing nearby, but instead hit the bystanders, police said.
Since the shooting, police say, they have concentrated on the area, focusing on at least six gangs believed responsible for the area’s heavily contested drug trade and the resulting violence. Leading up to Saturday — part of a holiday weekend during which authorities typically beef up their presence in crime hotspots — police made several raids on gun and drug warrants, arresting about 30 people, and seeking at least 20 more.
Police also seized more than 262 pounds of heroin, along with about 400 pounds of marijuana. They did not release details regarding those arrested or where they were arrested.
Meeting with reporters across the street from the store on Saturday, police brass said the raids would help head off a violent holiday weekend.
“That's the objective — we want to take the wind of it, take the guys calling the shots and driving the violence. And we know a lot of it is narcotics-related and that's our way to get them off the street,” said Anthony Riccio, head of CPD's organized crime unit.
It was unclear whether the gunman who wounded the three in April was among those caught up in Chicago police’s raids. But authorities believe they’ve taken great strides at helping cripple the drug market that led to the shooting.
The North Side raid also follows the “Operation Bunny Trap” in which local and federal authorities earlier this week charged nearly 50 members or associates of the Gangster Two-Six Nation street gang accused of dealing guns and drugs on Chicago's South Side and surrounding suburbs.
Several of those arrested in the raids announced Saturday were expected to appear before a Cook County judge Saturday for a bond hearing.
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