In a major crackdown on gun and drug trafficking in South Florida, federal authorities, in collaboration with local law enforcement, have arrested 31 individuals in the culmination of Operation Showdown – an initiative targeting the criminal undercurrents of Miami-Dade and Broward counties. As reported by Local10, U.S Attorney for the Southern District of Florida Hayden O’Byrne declared the community safer, noting the extensive criminal records of many of the arrested individuals.
The two-month-long mission, having started in April led to the confiscation of 80 firearms, several linked to violent crimes, some of the firearms confirmed stolen and others linked to prior shootings including a homicide with hundreds of rounds of ammunition according to a statement obtained by NBC Miami. Additionally, agents seized a significant haul of drugs, among them six kilograms of fentanyl and six pounds of meth, also flakka, pink cocaine, and crack, their efforts uncovering a fentanyl supply that is being manipulated to mimic legitimate OxyContin pills.
“This is fentanyl pressed in a basement, which is lethal; one of the undercovers was told by a defendant that you have to cut the fentanyl because this is really strong, it’ll kill someone,” O’Byrne disclosed in the details captured by NBC Miami. Among the wanted, authorities are actively searching for fugitive Jonathan Eric Brown Jr., who is wanted for drug crimes, as Operation Showdown’s impact on drug and firearm trafficking continues to unravel…