MACOMB COUNTY, Mich. – Police discussed the results of a joint community wide effort to help combat the heroin epidemic Friday in the Roseville City Council Chambers.
“Operation Smackdown IV” is a coalition of 22 local, state and federal law enforcement agencies that has conducted area-wide sweeps in an effort to curb the sale, transport and use of heroin.
Over three days, the participating agencies made 125 felony arrests, 62 misdemeanor arrests and 16 ordinance arrests. There were 25 search warrants executed and five weapons seized. Various amounts of heroin, cocaine and marijuana were seized, along with 53 vehicles.
The operation had three goals: disrupt the distribution of heroin with arrests; flood known trafficking areas with undercover officers; and offer drug-rehabilitation options to those arrested.
"What we're doing is we have residents' houses targeted on the east side of Detroit, just south of the 8 Mile Road corridor," Roseville police Chief James Berlin said. "We're watching these houses."
It's a never-ending battle for police. They take down one drug house and another opens for business. Right now, officers are tracking a woman who stopped near one of the homes to get heroin. They watch it all go down and then make their move.
You can watch Mara MacDonald's full story in the video posted above.