Federal agents and local police have made 435 arrests in St. Louis over the past eight weeks as part of Operation Show Me Justice, a coordinated surge targeting violent crime, drugs, and illegal firearms.
The arrests include 412 individuals with outstanding warrants, many of whom had multiple warrants and remained active in their neighborhoods before being taken off the streets.
Multi-Agency Surge Targets Violent Crime
Agents from the ATF, U.S. Marshals Service, DEA, FBI, Homeland Security, and the St. Louis Metro Police Department worked side by side on the operation.
"We're going to work side by side, state, local, federal, to target violent crime, guns, drugs, and all sorts of other violent behavior occurring in the city of St. Louis," a law enforcement official said in a video posted by Rapid Response 47.
The operation also resulted in the seizure of 80 kilos of drugs, 166 illegal firearms, six machine gun conversion devices, and more than $1 million in currency.
Outstanding Warrants Cleared
Most of those arrested already had outstanding warrants, according to the official.
"That includes 412 outstanding warrant arrests. So most of these individuals already had outstanding warrants for arrests," the official said. "Many of them have multiple. I heard of a guy who had seven outstanding warrants who was just picked up."
The official emphasized that these individuals had been operating in their neighborhoods until the operation began.
Political Willpower Drives Results
The surge is being framed as a matter of political will, with leadership credited for enabling the results.
"We don't have to accept violent crime. It's not something you have to shrug your shoulders at," the official said. "This is not a fact of life in a city or anywhere else if you have the political willpower."
President Trump and Attorney General Todd Blanche were cited as leading by example in the push against violent crime.
