MUSCOGEE COUNTY, Ga. ( WRBL )— Monday morning, the Georgia Gang Investigator Association (GGIA) held its quarterly regional meeting at the Muscogee County Sheriff’s Office. The goal? To spot trends and share intelligence to suppress the spread of gang activity.
“In Columbus, the most important public safety issue is dealing with gangs. We went from an average of 22 homicides just eight years ago to having 70 in 2021,” District Attorney Don Kelly said. “This year is looking better, and I attribute that to the fact that we have been working on gang cases and treating them seriously.”
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) has placed three agents in their new West Georgia Gang Task Force here in Columbus . Three more are anticipated to join by spring. Special Agent in Charge, Jeremy Dockins, explains what gangs bring to Columbus.
“There’s violent crime that comes along with the gangs and specifically just the young youth that are getting involved at an early age, especially in the school system,” Dockins said. “We’re going to try to be getting out to them and just trying to stop and show them there’s a better way.”