An early morning Fair Park raid by the Dallas Police Department in conjunction with the FBI resulted in almost two dozen people being arrested. The raid which included four hundred agents happened west and southwest of Fair Park.
Fair Park Raid Details
Suspects arrested were connected to organized gang activity, including murder and drug sales. Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia in February had referred to drug houses as a detriment.
Despite being one of thirty-five sectors in Dallas, the area where the raid occured makes up ten percent of all violent crime in Dallas. In 2018 there were 10 murders and 315 aggravated assaults in the area. In 2020, murders more than doubled to 23 and Agg Assaults was 485.
Federal authorities, including the FBI, said the area where the raid happened is one of the most violent areas in the Metroplex, and Dallas police said the area makes up 10% of all violent crime across the city.
An FBI taskforce called “Safer Streets,” was launched to combat violent crime in the area.
Officials with several law enforcement agencies – including the FBI Dallas Field Office; the Dallas Police Department; the Drug Enforcement Agency, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms – all contributed to the investigation and arrests.
In addition to Chief Garcia, FBI Special Agent in Charge Matthew J. DeSarno, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Prerak Shah, DEA Dallas Special Agent in Charge Eduardo Chávez, and ATF Dallas Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey Boshek II were all present during the briefing at the FBI Dallas Headquarters.
Shah said they decided to move in now, because they feared the violence would only get worse in the summer months.
“Dallas is bracing for sure and we watch with alarm as summer will spike in the summer,” said Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Prerak Shah. “But the chaos of the pandemic has made everything even more volatile.”
Shah said the inclusion of federal investigators, and federal charges – which often carry steeper penalties than state charges – acts as a possible deterrent.
“The know the difference between state time and federal time, and they do not want to get federal time,” Shah explained, saying that the operation today achieved two goals: taking violent criminals off the street and sending a message to would-be-criminals that the Feds are watching.
Chief Garcia added, “the message today for the residents is simple: DPD is not alone in keeping community safe, DPD is not alone in weeding out the criminal element and DPD is not along in seeding the community with hope,” he said.
Last summer when Governor Abbott sent in the Texas Rangers to patrol much of the same area, local City Councilman Adam Bazaldua responded sharply. He was oe of the ringleaders to defund Dallas City Police last summer in favor of bike lanes, art, and solar power programs.