Crime & Safety
500 Violent Fugitives Arrested In Northern Illinois As Part Of Special Operation
The arrests were made over three months by a U.S. Marshals Service task force as part of a special operation, authorities said.
CHICAGO — Federal authorities arrested nearly 500 violent fugitives out of northern Illinois during a recent initiative called Operation North Star III, officials said.
The 498 people were arrested by the U.S. Marshals Service Great Lakes Regional Fugitive Task Force of the Northern District of Illinois, according to a news release from the task force distributed last week. The arrests of wanted people included 54 for homicide, 127 for sexual assault, 47 for armed robbery and 92 for aggravated battery, the news release said.
The third undertaking of its kind since 2022, Operation North Star III saw 4,455 violent warrants cleared in three months and targeted 20 cities nationwide, according to the news release. In addition to the arrests, authorities seized 555 guns, over $1 million in cash and 85 kilograms of narcotics as part of the operation, officials said.
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“Together with our law enforcement partners across the country, the Justice Department is zeroing in on the violent fugitives responsible for the greatest crime in our communities,” U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said in the news release.
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