42 Gang Arrests In Sweeping Crackdown Since Last Week: Police

MINEOLA, NY — Nassau County officials announced a crackdown on violence and criminal activity committed by gang members.

"We have had a very important, sweeping pick-up of people [who] were dangerous to our community, and the whole region," said Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman. "We want to send a clear message that gang activity in Nassau County will not be tolerated."

Since August 13, the Nassau County Police Department has coordinated a sweeping takedown of gang members and other dangerous criminals across the county, which led to 42 arrests, many of which involved drug and weapons charges, Blakeman said.

Half of the arrested individuals were known gang members from criminal organizations like MS-13, the 18th Street Gang, and The Trinitarios. Thirty-three of the 42 detained individuals have been transferred to ICE custody due to illegal status, county officials said.

"We're talking about people who've been in gangs for quite some time," Blakeman said. "They've engaged in illegal activity, including attempted murder, rape, [and] all kinds of felonies, including human trafficking of young girls."

After three days of gang-on-gang shooting, Nassau County police, along with federal partners, made 13 arrests on August 13, Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said.

"We promised in the beginning that we were going to go after the worst of the worst, and we're not done yet," Ryder said.

Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said: "These arrests are a testament to how committed we are in Nassau County to dismantling gangs and our toxic influence in our community."

While Immigration and Customs Enforcement participated in the Tuesday news conference, Blakeman said ICE was not directly involved in the gang crackdown, "except to the extent that if there was somebody who was apprehended, and that individual was going to be released because of the cashless bail laws, we notified ICE," he said. "ICE came and picked them us, so that they would not continue to do harm to our community."