The U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) has arrested 61 wanted individuals and closed 97 felony arrest warrants as part of a recently concluded operation in Iowa.
The arrests were made by USMS’s Southern Iowa Fugitive Task Force, which led a multi-agency collaboration between federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, with the effort aiming to remove dangerous fugitives from central Iowa communities, USMS said in a July 28 statement.
Under Operation Heatwave, an “aggressive fugitive enforcement initiative” was carried out between July 21 and 24 that targeted gang members and violent offenders wanted for crimes such as sexual assault, homicide, aggravated assault, and weapons offenses, the agency said.
One of the arrested individuals had multiple warrants for possession of a controlled substance and control of firearms by a felon. Another person had a warrant for parole violation related to a conviction involving kidnapping. A third individual has been accused of sexually assaulting a juvenile female.
In addition to arresting fugitives, the Southern Iowa Fugitive Task Force recovered several pounds of narcotics and three firearms.
“Operation Heatwave demonstrates what can be accomplished when federal, state, and local law enforcement work together to make our communities safer,” U.S. Marshal Ted Kamatchus for the Southern District of Iowa said in the statement.
“Locating and arresting the most dangerous offenders remains one of the highest priorities of the U.S. Marshals Service.”
The USMS arrested 73,323 fugitives and cleared 87,984 warrants last year.
In a July 22 statement, USMS said that the “Making the D.C. Safe and Beautiful Task Force” executed 48 arrests, including two for alleged murder.
The task force was established through a March 2025 executive order issued by President Donald Trump aimed at addressing concerns about crime, public order, and urban aesthetics in the District of Columbia.
Under the task force, U.S. Marshals Service Director Gadyaces Serralta is leading more than 4,000 people from 28 agencies carrying out enforcement activities, focused on arresting violent criminals, locating missing children, seizing firearms, and clearing warrants.
Funding Concerns
The Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), a democracy watchdog, criticized the U.S. Marshals’ involvement in the D.C. task force in a June 8 report.
According to CREW, it obtained USMS records through the Freedom of Information Act, which showed that more than $18 million in taxpayer funds were used between August 2025 and March 2026 for deploying forces for the Trump administration’s “federal takeover of D.C.”
The agency “apparently pulled resources” from district courts nationwide to take part in the Making the D.C. Safe and Beautiful Task Force, the report said.
“Since fiscal year 2025, there have been over 800 threats made against federal judges,” the report said, citing data from USMS. “Despite this record number and ongoing personal attacks from lawmakers and executive branch officials, the Trump administration has redirected resources away from judges’ security.”
The Marshals Service is tasked with protecting members of the judicial family, including judges, attorneys, jurors, and witnesses.
In its July 22 statement, USMS said that since the launch of the task force, authorities have arrested 15,426 people, including 92 known gang members. More than 3,000 arrests were linked to narcotics charges, while 1,540 were associated with weapons offenses. Authorities also located 25 missing children.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Marshals arrested 383 violent fugitives and sex offenders under two separate operations that targeted criminals throughout New Jersey during the 2026 FIFA World Cup and in the months leading up to the event, the agency said in a July 17 statement.
Arrested individuals include 107 known gang members, 48 individuals convicted as sex offenders, 21 people wanted for alleged sexual assault, and 19 homicide suspects. In addition, more than $95,000 in cash and 28 illegal firearms were seized.
“Make no mistake about it, violent career criminals and convicted sex offenders are a menace to public safety. The U.S. Marshals and their local partners will never stop trying to remove them from our communities,” Nicholas Ricigliano, acting U.S. Marshal for the District of New Jersey, said in the statement.
