An operation targeting known street gangs and their associates in Hamilton County was concluded with 126 arrests over the course of three months, the U.S. Marshals Service announced Wednesday.
Operation Triple Beam, is a "systematic and sustained collaborative enforcement operation specifically focused on reducing violent gang crime," according to a news release.
Officials seized seven guns; 1.5 kilograms of heroin, cocaine, amphetamines and marijuana; and closed 130 warrants, the news release states.
The 126 arrests were for violent offenders and criminal gang members in Chattanooga who were wanted for a variety of charges, including murder, robbery, rape, aggravated assault, and assorted drug charges, according to the news release.
In 2010, the Marshals Service identified gangs as a priority within its violent crime reduction strategy and "made a commitment to reinvigorate its gang enforcement efforts," the news release states.
As a result, Operation Triple Beam was formed with an emphasis on three main areas: fugitive investigations, targeted firearm and drug investigations, and proactive street investigations and patrols.
Since 2010, the USMS has led more than 50 counter-gang operations across the country, which have yielded over 8,000 arrests and the seizure of more than 1,800 illegal firearms, the news release states.
Hamilton County's effort was carried out by the Chattanooga Police Department and the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office working in conjunction with the U.S. Marshals Service, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Smoky Mountain Fugitive Task Force.
The notable arrests include:
Antonio Clements
Clements, 24 and a Gangster Disciple, was taken into custody on Oct. 31. A search warrant was issued for a residence after officials learned information about the possible presence of illegally-obtained guns and drugs.
A Taurus .357 was found inside the residence, along with an unspecified amount of pills. It wasn't clear what kind of pills.
Clements was taken to the Hamilton County Jail and charged with possession of marijuana for resale, theft of property, possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.
Maurice Davis
Maurice Davis, 29, had been indicted on four counts of rape of a child for alleged incidents involving a child between the ages of four and twelve.
On Nov. 18, Davis was arrested at a 28th Street address after he was seen entering the residence.
He was taken to the Hamilton County Jail for booking.
Davis has an extensive criminal record, including a charge of attempted first-degree murder in 2008. He received a suspended eight-year prison sentence in that case.
Keontae Bush
Bush, 21, was facing charges after his ex-girlfriend said he fired a gun at her and then ran her off the road on Interstate 75 on Nov. 28.
He was arrested on Dec. 11 and charged with attempted first degree murder, domestic assault, reckless endangerment and possession of a firearm during the commission of a dangerous felony.
Two juveniles
Two minors escaped the Bradley County Juvenile Detention Center on Nov. 2 by climbing a fence.
Three days later, the Bradley County Sheriff's Office learned information indicating the escapees were possibly in Chattanooga at a hotel near Hamilton Place Mall.
The OTB Task Force worked through the night attempting to locate the juveniles. Then, at around 6 a.m. on Nov. 6, an armed carjacking took place at a local motel on on McCutchen Road in Chattanooga.
A 13-year-old victim had been getting belongings out of a vehicle when he was approached by the juvenile suspects. The 13-year-old was forced to give the two gunmen the keys to the car.
Not long after, the car was located at a gas station off Exit 328 in Dalton, Georgia. Both suspects were taken into custody on the parking lot of the gas station without incident.
They were then taken to the Whitfield County Juvenile Detention Center and face an escape charge in Bradley County, and a carjacking charge in Chattanooga.
Dominique Collins
Collins, 30, allegedly shot a man in the chest on April 13 after the man got into an arguement with his mother at a Circle K gas station on Shallowford Road.
The victim told police Collins shot him after Collins asked him a question.
The man picked Collins from a photo lineup, and Collins was added to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation's Top 10 Most Wanted list.
Then on Nov. 28, officials learned Collins was in the Lynchburg, Virginia, area. Two days later, authorities found the home where Collins was, but he escaped by jumping from the second story balcony in the back of the residence. He was later apprehended after a brief foot pursuit.
Collins was taken to the Blue Ridge Regional Jail and charged attempted first degree murder and violation of supervised release.
Dwight Turner Jr.
Turner, 25, is the suspected driver of a vehicle involved in a crash on South Holtzclaw Avenue that killed two people and left one critically injured on Jan. 3.
Eleven days later, officials learned Turner was staying at an address in Austell, Georgia. Turner was then arrested on Jan. 15 and charged with two counts of vehicular homicide and aggravated assault.