Nearly 200 Arrested In Drug Sting In Compton

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mrtonguetwista

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Feb 6, 2003
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LOS ANGELES -- An undercover operation in the Compton area resulted in 184 arrests and netted 35,000 tablets used in making methamphetamine, along with several pounds of meth, cocaine and heroin, authorities said Monday.

The six-month investigation, involving county and federal agencies, "focused on the numerous sources of supply that provided narcotics to gang members and other street-level dealers in Compton," Sheriff Lee Baca said.

Booked into evidence were 35,000 pseudoephedrine tablets and about 25 pounds of methamphetamine, officials said Monday.

Also seized were 41.5 pounds of marijuana, 4.2 pounds of heroin, 6.8 pounds of cocaine, six vehicles, 22 firearms and $87,287 in currency, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department reported.

The joint task force effort, started in February, involved the sheriff's department, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the U.S. Attorney's Office and the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.

The arrests involved 140 alleged felonies, Baca said.

"Extensive surveillance and undercover operations resulted in the acquisition of substantial evidence," Baca said.

"Drug-related violent crime is a serious problem," Baca said. "All of us in the field of drug law enforcement are magnifying our resources -- united in the effort to combat drug trafficking and violent gangs in our communities."

In a time of shrinking budgets, he said, it behooves law enforcement agencies to cooperate. He said criminals can expect similar operations in the future.

"We will gut out these gangs -- gang members who think that they can deal in drugs, commit robberies, involve themselves in things that are counterproductive to the well-being of a neighborhood."

He said they have two options: "Either leave town or get arrested."