Crackdown on cartel suspects nets dozens of arrests

Dozens of dangerous San Diego-area criminal suspects with alleged ties to Mexican drug cartels were jailed Tuesday as part of a multi-agency sweep. The crackdown, dubbed "Operation Second Sole," targeted a total of 43 "high value" suspects allegedly involved in drug and weapons trafficking, robberies and "incredible acts of violence in our communities," according to San Diego police Lt. Kevin Ammon. "Many of the suspects arrested today have significant criminal histories and were considered to be armed and dangerous," Ammon said. "The success of today's operation rid the county of a serious threat to the safety and security of our citizens." Federal, state and local law enforcement personnel served arrest and search warrants throughout the San Diego region this morning to capture the suspects and "disrupt their criminal enterprises," the lieutenant said. SDPD officials and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives launched the operation "to interrupt and prevent dangerous individuals from committing acts of violence in furtherance of narcotics trafficking," said John Torres, special agent in charge of the ATF's Southern California division...more