Every month, the Rapides Area Drug Enforcement (RADE) Unit receives several complaints throughout Rapides and Grant Parish in reference to possible narcotics activity in certain areas. While each complaint received gets assigned to an agent, some go without an arrest being made within a short amount of time. These complaints take further investigation.
Between July 15-18, the RADE Unit dedicated extra manpower and time to revisit each of the complaints received during the past six months in Rapides and Grant Parishes. With the extra manpower from the RPSO Uniform Patrol, Resident Deputy Section and Crime Suppression Unit, along with the Grant Parish Sheriff’s Uniform Patrol Division and Louisiana Department of Probation and Parole, RADE conducted OPERATION: SUMMER HEAT-I.
Agents, along with the other uniform law enforcement, conducted traffic stops and search and arrest warrants in the following areas: Cotile Lake, Boyce, Flatwoods, Glenmora, Forest Hill, McNary, Plainview, Alexandria, Pineville, Lecompte, Cheneyville, Woodworth, Ball, Tioga, Kolin and Deville in Rapides Parish and several locations in Grant Parish including Colfax.
The results of OPERATION: SUMMER HEAT – I are below:
81 arrests
7 traffic citations issued
1 ICE detention assist
27 guns seized – 4 stolen guns recovered
Approximately 13 pounds of marijuana
Approximately 2 pounds Methamphetamines
12 grams crack cocaine
30 assorted CDSII-III pills
3.5 grams of mushrooms
5 sheets of K-2 (synthetic marijuana) infused paper for smoking
$69,145 in cash seized
“We know the public and our media partners had a lot of questions last week when they saw our deputies in different areas conducting operations. This is what we were doing” said Sheriff Mark Wood. “We do not publicize or do releases until the end due to the fact this could jeopardize ongoing enforcement operations. We appreciate the public as well as our media partners patience.”
Both Rapides and Grant Parish now have a cell phone app where citizens can send information to RADE. Also RADE has a Facebook Page where information can be sent as well as receiving all Crime Stopper tips for the Central Louisiana area.
“We will continue to conduct these operations, concentrating on illegal narcotics activity and gun crimes in our area but we also need the public’s help. These arrests with the gun and drug seizures are a direct result of the citizens and their complaints. As I have said many times before, just point us in the right direction and we will go from there” said Sheriff Wood.
The Rapides Area Drug Enforcement (RADE) Unit is a multi-jurisdictional team comprised of the Alexandria Police Department, Ball Police Department, Boyce Police Department, Cheneyville Police Department, Forest Hill Police Department, Glenmora Police Department, Grant Parish Sheriff’s Office Lecompte Police Department, McNary Police Department, Pineville Police Department, Rapides Parish Sheriff’s Office, Woodworth Police Department, Grant Parish District Attorney’s Office, Rapides Parish District Attorney’s Office and the Louisiana Department of Probation and Parole.