A Service of UA Little Rock

Gang-Related US Indictments Returned Against 49 In Central Arkansas

Brian Chilson

A federal prosecutor says 49 people have been indicted on gang- and drug-related charges in a crackdown on gun violence in Arkansas' capital city.

U.S. Attorney Cody Hiland says law enforcement officers arrested 21 people in early-morning raids Thursday and another 14 were taken into custody last week. Five defendants are in state custody and nine are fugitives.

Hiland says the defendants are named in 13 grand jury indictments and two complaints accusing them of drug trafficking and gun crimes. Authorities say some gangs were involved in a July shooting at the Power Ultra Lounge in Little Rock that injured 28 people.

Little Rock Mayor Mark Stodola says the drug trade drives crime and violence in the city and that the arrests are "putting a huge dent in those operations."

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