By The U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) has apprehended 3,421 violent fugitives across 10 metropolitan areas in a major law enforcement initiative, the Justice Department announced Thursday.
Operation North Star FY 2024 (ONS FY24), conducted from May 10 to September 13, focused on arresting individuals wanted for violent crimes, including homicide, sexual offenses, robbery, aggravated assault, and firearms violations.
“This operation demonstrates our unwavering commitment to removing dangerous offenders from our communities,” Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said in a statement. “The collaborative efforts of federal, state, and local law enforcement have made a significant impact on public safety.”
Key arrest figures from the 74-day operation include 216 fugitives wanted for homicide, 803 individuals charged with assault, and 482 suspects facing weapons offenses.
The operation also resulted in the seizure of 534 firearms, over $508,000 in U.S. currency, and 456 kilograms of illegal narcotics, including 138 pounds and more than 550,000 pills of fentanyl.
USMS Director Ronald L. Davis highlighted the operation’s focus on areas experiencing high levels of gun violence. “By removing over 3,000 dangerous fugitives from the streets, including more than 200 homicide suspects, we’ve made a tangible difference in neighborhood safety,” Davis said.
The metropolitan areas targeted in ONS FY24 were selected based on data from the National Crime Information Center and the FBI Uniform Crime Report. These locations included Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas; Charleston and North Charleston, South Carolina; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Little Rock, Arkansas; Phoenix, Arizona; St. Louis, Missouri (including East St. Louis, Illinois); Birmingham, Alabama; Winston-Salem, North Carolina; Dayton, Ohio; and San Antonio, Texas.
Since its inception in July 2022, Operation North Star initiatives have led to the arrest of more than 10,200 wanted fugitives across 30 locations nationwide. This includes 1,153 individuals charged with homicide and the removal of over 1,425 weapons linked to violent crimes.
The USMS employed a data-driven, evidence-based approach to identify and apprehend the most dangerous offenders. This strategy builds on decades of experience in coordinating interagency law enforcement operations, dating back to the establishment of regional and district fugitive task forces in the 1980s.
Notable arrests during ONS FY24 include Aaron Michael Jones, arrested in Baton Rouge on May 20 for home invasion, domestic abuse battery, and child endangerment. In Fort Worth, Texas, four suspects were apprehended on May 22 in connection with a drive-by shooting that injured multiple children. Nine handguns and one shotgun were recovered during the arrest.
Garron Stevenson was arrested in St. Louis on May 21 for first-degree murder and unlawful use of a weapon after a shooting at a street racing event that killed a 14-year-old and injured six others. Michael Muldovan was taken into custody in Sterling, Virginia, on August 15, wanted in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, for first-degree statutory rape and indecent liberties with a child.
DOJ
