In Natchitoches, Sabine, and Rapides Parishes, the Central Louisiana Violent Crime Abatement Team’s (VCAT) two-day detail resulted in the arrest of 55 individuals, and 83 citations were issued. Trooper Casey Wallace said the collaborative effort of multiple agencies recovered meth, cocaine, heroin, and different narcotics.
“I think they even actually got a second-degree murder suspect out of Shreveport identified off of a traffic stop, he actually ended up being a passenger in one of those traffic stops is what I’m understanding,” said Wallace.
The goal of the operation was to detect, identify, and apprehend individuals involved in various criminal activities.
While local law enforcement agencies are constrained by their jurisdictions, Wallace points out that criminals aren’t restricted so by forming a task force of multiple agencies there’s strength in numbers.
“So, it really gives us the advantage of being able to reach out to those different areas and not have those restraints on us when we actually coordinate and we all get together and do it together,” said Wallace.
While such operations prove to be productive with multiple arrests, Wallace said unfortunately they require lots of manpower which is a problem facing all law enforcement agencies.
“You’re trying to pull guys to be able to run these details or to be able to hit a certain area that’s getting way high crime rates, it’s just becoming a little more difficult schedule-wise when you don’t have that many personnel as we used to,” said Wallace.
The VCAT detail was comprised of Louisiana State Police, Louisiana Probation and Patrol, Rapides Parish Sheriff’s Office, Natchitoches Parish Sheriff’s Office, Sabine Parish Sheriff’s Office, and the Natchitoches Police Department.
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