43 Arrested in 'Operation Safe Neighborhood'

The Sarasota Police Department on Friday announced the arrest of 43 people following a lengthy investigation meant to crack down on street-level drug dealing.

“Operation Safe Neighborhood” began in December 2014 and was completed in May with a roundup of those implicated during the 6-month investigation, Lt. James Rieser announced.

“This is the most people we’ve ever arrested in a street-level operation,” Rieser was quoted in an email to media as saying. “This operation is one of many ways the Sarasota Police Department is combating drug sales and activity in our community,”

The operation involved undercover detectives who made drug buys from suspected street-level dealers, the agency said. Charges against the 43 arrested include sale of rock cocaine within 1,000 feet of a school, church or park, sale of heroin, sale of spice/designer drugs and more. All told, a combined total of 316 felony charges were lodged, police said.

The sweep targeted many areas of the city, including Gillespie Park, North Tamiami Trial, Central Avenue and Cocoanut Avenue and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Way.

“The Sarasota Police Department is committed to making the residents and visitors of the City of Sarasota feel safe through our drug enforcement efforts,” Rieser said. “We will continue to investigate complaints and
create proactive operations to reduce the flow of illegal narcotics into our community.”

Photo courtesy of the Sarasota Police Department