US Marshals Director Don Washington joined Attorney General William P. Barr in announcing that a large-scale law enforcement operation, known as “Operation Triple Beam Albuquerque”, concluded on October 31, 2019, with the arrests of 327 alleged fugitives throughout New Mexico. Washington is a NAFUSA member and a former member of the board of directors and treasurer.

The Department of Justice announced that “The operation resulted in the seizure of 43 illegal firearms, more than 50 pounds of methamphetamine, four pounds of heroin, and two pounds of cocaine. In addition, 31 stolen vehicles were recovered and $50,000 was seized.”

“We brought Operation Triple Beam, our mobile gang enforcement platform, to Albuquerque to target the gang-related fugitives fueling the violent crime in the area,” said Director Washington. “The U.S. Marshals in the District of New Mexico, along with dedicated inspectors in our Investigative Operations Division, and all of our partner agencies, achieved results that illustrate our full commitment to make communities safer by addressing violent crime at its core and taking the worst of the worst off the streets. The good citizens of New Mexico have our enduring support.”

The Department’s Office of Public Affairs reported:

This is the second OTB conducted by the U.S. Marshals in New Mexico this year. OTB Las Cruces concluded April 12, 2019, with the arrest of 154 fugitives throughout Dona Ana County; there were 115 felony arrests within the City of Las Cruces.

 

OTB provides communities with immediate relief from violent, gang-related crime and targets fugitives who commit violent crime and those who provide them safe harbor. Since the Department of Justice reinvigorated Project Safe Neighborhoods in 2017, U.S. Marshals have launched 33 OTB collaborations of local, state, federal and tribal law enforcement agencies in some of the nation’s most violence-plagued communities, resulting in more than 6,000 arrests, 1,200 firearms confiscations, and the seizure of $1.8 million.