Federal prosecutors in Fort Worth have filed charges against 141 people after a multi-agency enforcement push called Operation New Day, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Texas announced Monday.
The operation ran from Aug. 25 to Nov. 5 and included more than 20 undercover operations, according to the office's figures as reported by FOX 4. U.S. Attorney Ryan Raybould announced the results at a news conference in Fort Worth with federal and local officials.
What the charges are
The largest group, 51 people, is charged with illegal reentry after deportation. The rest of the breakdown released by the office:
- 45 drug trafficking cases, mostly involving methamphetamine and fentanyl
- 15 federal firearms cases, including felon-in-possession and machine gun counts, with more expected
- 10 cases of violating national defense airspace
- 9 child exploitation and related sex offense cases
- 7 election and citizenship-related cases
- 2 document fraud cases
- 1 case of assaulting a federal officer
- 1 case of falsely claiming U.S. citizenship
The announcement did not explain what conduct the airspace charges involve. No defendants were named in the coverage of the announcement.
Agents seized more than 45 kilograms of methamphetamine, more than 22 kilograms of cocaine and more than 100 grams of fentanyl. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said it took 41 machine gun conversion devices, the small parts that let a semiautomatic gun fire automatically. FOX 4 reported 35 firearms recovered; the Fort Worth Star-Telegram put the count at 38.
Who took part
Besides the U.S. Attorney's Office, the Star-Telegram listed the U.S. Marshals Service, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the ATF, the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Tarrant County Sheriff's Office, the Fort Worth Police Department and the Tarrant County District Attorney's Office.
