Baton Rouge, LA – It was six days fugitives in the Baton Rouge area did not expect and will not soon forget. The United States Marshals Service and law enforcement agencies from the nine Parishes that make up the Middle District of Louisiana conducted Operation Falcon 2008 (Federal and Local Cops Organized Nationally) from June 16 through June 21.

Weeks of planning and preparation have produced staggering results. Four teams of officers and agents arrested 106 fugitives and cleared 232 outstanding felony warrants. Operation Falcon 2008 focused on fugitives wanted for sexual offenses to include sex offender registration violations, violent crimes against persons’ offenses, and narcotics trafficking and possession violations. This is the forth consecutive year that the U.S. Marshals Service has conducted the FALCON operations throughout the country.

Included in the 106 arrested were Larry D. Howard and Michael A. Bell, Jr. Howard was wanted by the Baton Rouge Police Department for Attempted First Degree Murder, Illegal Use of a Weapon, and Aggravated Criminal Damage to Property. Baton Rouge Police Department detectives say that Howard allegedly became angry during a dispute with several victims and threw a stone through a window of their residence. He then fired multiple shots into the residence where three small children were hiding. Falcon investigators obtained information where Howard could be located and safely took him into custody.

Bell was arrested in Gonzales by Operation Falcon investigators. A previously convicted felon, Bell was wanted by the Ascension Parish Sheriff’s Office for failure to appear in court on charges of Possession with Intent to Distribute Marijuana. During the arrest, Bell was found to be in possession of approximately seven grams of marijuana, a digital scale commonly used to weigh illegal narcotics, a 12-gauge shotgun and over fifty rounds of assorted ammunition. Bell was booked into the APSO jail on the warrant pending additional charges.

Other Arrests:

Charles Edward Young III was wanted by the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office for Cruelty to a Juvenile. Young is alleged to have intentionally caused unjustifiable pain to a minor victim while attending a bon fire in the Magnolia Beach Road area of Greenwell Springs. Detectives believe that Young stripped the intoxicated victim of his clothing and dragged him around the fire causing burns to his body. Young then allegedly used sticks from the fire to burn the victim several times. Falcon investigators obtained information where Young was living and safely took him into custody.

Alex Chaney was arrested in Baton Rouge by the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office (EBRSO) and Operation Falcon investigators. Falcon investigators responded to Chaney’s residence to serve a warrant for failure to register as a convicted sex offender. While securing the rear of the residence, Falcon investigators observed Chaney performing sexual acts with a dog. Chaney was contacted and taken into custody. The EBRSO was contacted and arrested Chaney for crimes against nature. The EBR Animal Control responded to the scene and took custody of four dogs living at the residence. The Louisiana Attorney General’s Cyber Crimes Unit also responded to the scene to take custody of a computer believed to contain illegal pornography.

“Operation Falcon has been a huge success in the Baton Rouge area the last three years,” said Carey Jenkins, U.S. Marshal for the Middle District of Louisiana.

“This year was special because it allowed us to continue the commitment of the local law enforcement leaders to suppress crime in the communities by getting the fugitives that have already committed crimes off the streets. Many times the people already wanted for committing crimes are the ones continuing to engage in criminal activity,” said Marshal Jenkins.

Operation FALCON 2008– Baton Rouge was comprised of over 25 law enforcement agents from 13 contributing agencies in the Capital Area. The agencies involved in the operation were the Ascension Parish Sheriff’s Office, Baton Rouge City Constable’s Office, Baton Rouge Police Department, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (AFT), Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office, Iberville Parish Sheriff’s Office, Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office, Louisiana Probation and Parole, Louisiana State Police, Point Coupee Parish Sheriff’s Office, Social Security Administration, and the United States Probation Office.

Led by the U.S. Marshal Service, Operation FALCON is an ongoing, multi-city, nationwide law enforcement effort. Since June 1st, Operation FALCON 2008 has netted 11,540 arrests and cleared nearly 15,000 warrants across the United States.

Since its inception in 2005, Operation FALCON has made over 36,000 arrests and cleared over 45,000 warrants. It continues to be the largest and most successful fugitive apprehension effort in U.S. Marshals history.

The U.S. Marshals Service also coordinates the Middle Louisiana Fugitive Task Force, a multi-agency task force that targets persons wanted for violent crimes, narcotic offenses, and sexual offenders in the Capital area and surrounding Parishes. Supporting agencies are the Baton Rouge Police Department, East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office, West Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Offices, Louisiana State Police, and the Louisiana State Probation and Parole.

For more information on Operation FALCON, visit http://www.usmarshals.gov/falcon08/media.htm
 

America’s Oldest Federal Law Enforcement Agency