Since 2005 more than 36,000 fugitives were arrested during the operation.
NORTH CAROLINA -- Hundreds of felons were arrested this past week all across North Carolina as part of Operation Falcon, standing for Federal and Local Cops Organized Nationally.
Between June 15-20, law enforcement agencies targeted suspects across the state – from gang members to sexual predators. Drugs and automatic weapons were just some of the things that were discovered during the operation.
"It gave us the opportunity to coordinate the efforts of many of the local law enforcement agencies as well as many of the federal law enforcements agencies,” said Otis Hamilton, deputy U.S. Marshal. "We targeted the most violent criminal offenders in the district, specifically sex offenders, those involved in sex related crimes.”
Hundreds of felons were arrested this past week all across North Carolina as part of Operation Falcon, standing for Federal and Local Cops Organized Nationally.
That includes an alleged Crips gang member near the Triangle, a murder suspect from the Triad and 64-year-old Lymon Hughes, who was wanted for molesting an 8-year-old and was arrested in Cleveland County. “He had proved to be pretty elusive,” said Hamilton. “After all, he had been on the run for about 18 months."
The marshal’s office breaks North Carolina up into three districts. A total of 400 people were arrested and 908 warrants cleared in the eastern district. In the western district 151 were arrested with 389 warrants cleared. The middle district is still compiling its numbers.
Hamilton said the sweep made N.C. streets safe. “There's still a lot of work to be done, but I think this is definitely a worthwhile effort."
Since 2005 more than 36,000 fugitives were arrested during the operation. The marshal’s office says it remains the largest and most successful fugitive apprehension effort in the agency’s history.