US Marshals Take Down 262 Criminals, Gang Members, Locate 5 Missing Children in 'Operation Triple Beam'

(Elliott Cowand Jr/Shutterstock)

A two-month operation involving U.S. Marshals and local Oklahoma district authorities has made 262 arrests, 141 of them being confirmed gang members.

"Operation Triple Beam" has seen U.S. Marshals and local detectives address the increase of violent crimes in Oklahoma in recent months.

The effort ended on Sept. 6 and resulted in the arrest of 6 homicide suspects, 21 assault suspects, 21 burglary suspects, 88 weapons offense suspects, and 57 drug offense suspects, according to a recent U.S. Marshals service news release.

The U.S. Marshals Service Metro Fugitive Task Force also safely located a total of five missing children in the operation.

Law enforcement officers seized 72 firearms, more than 9 kilograms (approx. 20 pounds) of narcotics, and nearly $17,000 in currency, according to the U.S. Marshals Service.

Also, a suspect in a homicide that occurred in California was taken into custody in the Oklahoma City area. Four detectives from Fresno County Sheriff’s Office have traveled to Oklahoma City to continue the homicide investigation. They interviewed the suspect and witnesses and served search warrants in Oklahoma City.

(Illustration - Elliott Cowand Jr/Shutterstock)

Arrested gang members' alleged crimes include homicide, assault, sexual assault, drug distribution, illegal firearm possession, arson, and robbery.

A statement recently released from the U.S. Marshals News Service stated:

“Our primary goal with operations like OTB is to make communities safer. When we arrest these violent fugitives, we are also removing guns and narcotics from our streets. We believe these efforts have an immediate, positive impact on the communities we serve.”

Further updates confirm there are no known circumstances as yet surrounding the five missing children most recently found.

Among the arrested in Operation Triple Beam was a 22-year-old man accused of sexually assaulting a 6-month-old infant, FOX News reported. He is facing a host of charges including lewd acts to a child, manufacturing child pornography, and distributing it to at least two women.

A woman having the tape in her possession handed it to authorities in early August.

Other agencies that contributed to Operation Triple Beam include Oklahoma Highway Patrol, Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Office, Shawnee and Yukon Police, Potawatomie County Sheriff’s Office, Oklahoma Department of Corrections, and other local and state departments.

The U.S. Marshals Service has recently taken part in several high-profile operations to recover missing and at-risk children, some of whom were victimized by sex traffickers. Recent operations have recovered more than two-dozen children in the first three weeks of an ongoing operation in Ohio last week, and they located 39 missing children in Georgia last month.

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