DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.,None — One of the biggest criminal round-ups police have ever done in Daytona Beach took place Wednesday. Police forced their way into homes and started tracking down up to 150 people wanted for drug crimes.
CRIME SWEEP: See Images | Watch Raw Video RAW INTERVIEW: Police Chief Mike Chitwood CRIME REPORTS: Map Crimes In Your Neighborhood
WFTV reporter Jason Allen joined police as they served search warrants Wednesday morning and as police set up a command center in the center of the city; this was just the primary group Daytona Beach police targeted Wednesday.
By 5:00pm Wednesday, 40 arrests had been made, marked with a "captured" sticker, and if they have some success the number arrested could climb up over 100 by the end of the operation.
Police are bringing everybody to the command center, loading them into vans and taking them straight out to the jail. The sweep started around 4:30am.
Warrantsweep022311-17 Warrantsweep022311-17 CRIME SWEEP: Images | Raw Video WFTV followed right behind a SWAT team that was followed by a caravan of police that rolled through the city to four different homes. At each stop, police surrounded the house, then forced open doors and windows, used flash grenades to disorient anyone inside, and make a quick arrest.
Police were looking for drugs and expected to find guns and ammunition once they searched the homes.
After the initial searches, they spread out to go after a loose network of street and mid-level drug dealers, as well as some repeat criminals that were wanted for theft, prostitution, or parole violations.
There has been four months of investigation leading to the sweep. Police know who they're going after, but Wednesday morning the police chief talked about how unpredictable the operations can be.
"We don't know who's inside that house, who may be wanted for murder, who's on parole and is not going to spend the rest of their life in jail, or who says, 'Screw that, I'm going out in a blaze of glory and this is the way to go.' And that's what is the most dangerous aspect and, as the police chief, that's what keeps me up at night," Chief Mike Chitwood told WFTV.
Most of those arrested will serve some time behind bars, but WFTV asked the state attorney if the big sweeps deter criminals from coming back once they get out.
"Ultimately what happens is you get more people coming in and doing the same activity once again," state attorney R.J. Larizza.
Police will be tracking the remaining suspects still wanted for the next few days. Police and prosecutors are already planning another large scale operation next month on the beachside of the city.
Even though it's one of the city's biggest operations, it cost nothing to carry out. The city is using a $500,000 federal grant to combat drugs and violent crime. Early Wednesday afternoon, police were still circling the city trying to pick up the rest of the people on their list.
WFTV
