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JEFFERSON -
Law enforcement agencies in three counties
and two states combined forces to conduct a crime sweep this past weekend,
netting drugs, stolen materials and more, Ashtabula County Sheriff Lt. Greg Leonhard said Monday.
Leonhard said the surveillance and traffic patrols by marked and unmarked
vehicles saturated Ashtabula County and state roads stopping traffic
offenders and netting a few felony suspects. Leonhard said the task force
effort was in the planning stage for three months in a cooperative effort
with all the police and other law enforcement agencies.
Police and law enforcement agencies on the sweep included Ashtabula, Geneva,
Conneaut, Andover, Geneva-on-the-Lake, North Kingsville, Pennsylvania State
Police, the TAG Task Force of Trumbull, Ashtabula and Geauga counties, Ohio
Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation and the Ohio Highway
Patrol. "The OHP for example did a traffic stop early Sunday morning
in the routes 84 and 45 area of Saybrook uncovering the remnants of
methamphetamine lab materials. We got valuable intelligence on other types
of crime going on in the areas," Leonhard said.
The tactical squad sweeps began Thursday and continued through early Sunday
morning, Leonhard said. A total of 1,467 traffic stops were made resulting
in 512 arrests with the largest number made on Friday. Major focus was
to enforce traffic laws with the goal of increasing traffic safety on county
highways, Leonhard said. Geauga County Sheriff Dan McClelland provided the
forces with a portable radio communication command vehicle, which was parked
at the OHP post on Route 20 in Saybrook Township. "We took dangerous
traffic offenders off the roads. These people are often the ones involved in
drug offenses," Leonhard said.
Armed with a search warrant, the Ashtabula County SWAT team, OHP special
squad, TAG officers and deputies raided a property in Cherry Valley
Township. Officers recovered six stolen vehicles, a suspected stolen
portable heater and remnants of a methamphetamine lab, officials said.
Leonhard said this same property is suspect of illegal activity, which would
have continued if not for the combined efforts of the multiple agencies
working together. On the first night, Sheriff Deputy Rob Ginn, during a
routine traffic stop, discovered a large amount of cocaine in the vehicle,
then made multiple arrests of the occupants.
A breakdown in the 1,467 traffic related stops and arrests include: 69
seatbelt violations; 27 arrests for operating under the influence of alcohol
or drugs, 780 warnings issues, 552 vehicle defect citations, 49 driving
under license suspensions, 10 felony arrests. Under the 54 criminal related
arrests: 11 felony cases, 26 drug related cases, 43 assistance to other
agencies, two cases released to other agencies and 15 other type arrests.
Items seized or arrests made during the patrols were: 127 grams marijuana,
108 grams of cocaine, 73 different prescription type pills, three
methamphetamine labs, three illegal weapons, seven stolen vehicles, three
search warrants, five arrest warrants. In addition, $8,790 in drug money was
seized by the departments.
"We've gotten a better working relationship going with all the other police
agencies. Plans are to do this again and we will critique our efforts in a
few weeks to see where it can be improved," Leonhard said.
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