Dozens arrested, three guns seized in DC crackdown

Nearly 50 people were arrested and three firearms were recovered in Washington in a three-day crackdown targeting fugitives with active warrants by the Metropolitan Police Department, the FBI and U.S. Marshals, police announced Friday.

Operation Trident targeted violent fugitives with active warrants between Tuesday and Thursday this week, mostly for parole violations or failures to appear in court. 

“Violent crime within the District is predominantly driven by a small number of individuals,” acting Metropolitan Police Chief Pamela Smith said. “This week’s operation was a significant step towards combating this violence and bringing peace back to our neighborhoods.” 

The operations come on the heels of a similar effort from the U.S. Marshals Service dubbed Operation North Star. That nationwide program has arrested thousands with outstanding warrants in various cities, including Washington, D.C.

“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,” 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.”

The arrests also come as members of Congress focus their attention on crime in the District. The House Judiciary Committee is scheduled to hold a Thursday hearing to discuss violent crime in the city and prosecutorial accountability.

Republicans have claimed prosecutors in cities like Washington have failed to properly push for charges against violent criminals, leading to rising crime rates. While violent crime has gone down in much of the country, Washington has seen a rising level of murders and carjackings this year.

Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) was carjacked outside of his Navy Yard apartment in southeast Washington on Monday. He said the city is “more dangerous” than his district on the U.S.-Mexico border.

Washington recently had its 200th homicide this year, marking a 38 percent increase compared to the same period in 2022. Vehicle theft has also more than doubled so far this year, with over 5,400 total such thefts in 2023 as of Tuesday.