By Carlos Hernandez for hoodline
In an effort to clamp down on rising violent crime, federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies are joining forces to create the Catawba Valley Violent Crime Task Force, a move intended to curb the threat in the region.
According to an announcement by the FBI – Charlotte on their social media page, this new coalition counts among its members the FBI itself, Catawba County Sheriff’s Office, Hickory Police Department, Maiden Police Department, Newton Police Department, North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, all aiming to take on offenders with a firm hand.
The primary objective of the task force is strategizing to disrupt significant violent crimes before they occur while also ensuring a quick and efficient response to incidents, focusing chiefly on gang violence, armed robberies and drug trafficking, the latter of which has seen a worrying rise in recent years, necessitating such a unified show of deterrent, agents and detectives will work collaboratively to manage not only local cases but also those stretching beyond the county lines. Both the U.S. Attorney’s Office Western District of North Carolina and the Catawba County District Attorney’s Office will review joint cases, to ensure prosecutions are not just expedient but also appropriately situated within our legal framework.