Charlotte, N.C. – Combining the crime fighting efforts of local law enforcement with the national resources of U.S. marshals, Operation FALCON 2008 netted 151 arrests in a weeklong joint fugitive effort in the Western District or North Carolina.

Operation FALCON (Federal and Local Cops Organized Nationally) is an annual fugitive apprehension initiative sponsored by the U.S. Marshals Service which creates special task forces of local, state and federal investigators in an effort to apprehend subjects wanted on outstanding charges of certain categories of crimes. Special emphasis is placed on sex offenders, violent crimes, drug violations, and gang affiliation.

Sixteen local police agencies within the Western District of North Carolina joined U.S. marshals in a week long concentrated effort to locate and apprehend criminal defendants whom have eluded arrests on specific charges. The effort not only produced the high number of actual arrests, but “cleared” 389 outstanding warrants. “Cleared” indicates that some defendants had multiple warrants, were found to be in custody in other jurisdictions, deceased, or the local prosecutors are unwilling to pursue extradition.

Announcing the FALCON arrest results, United States Marshal Patrick C. Smith and United States Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert applauded the cooperation of all of the involved agencies to make the extra effort to locate and arrest those suspects wanted on charges generating out of their jurisdiction. “A significant number of fugitives arrested this week were wanted by other counties and states from where we found them,” Smith said.

One such case Smith used as an example was Larry Junious Booker. On May 28, 2008, warrants were obtained for the arrest of Larry Booker for the alleged sexual assault on a nine year old Lincoln County girl. A few days later, a parole warrant was issued by the N.C. Department of Corrections stemming from a 1981 conviction for first degree murder in Alamance County.  After Falcon investigators tracked Booker to a Denmark, S.C. residence, U. S. marshals in Columbia, S.C. were contacted and effectuated the arrest.

Another example cited by Smith was the arrest of Victor Joe Neff. In April, 2007, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania issued a warrant for Neff for failing to comply with Megan’s Law Registration stemming from a 1998 California conviction for child molestation, and for violating probation from a Pennsylvania charge. FALCON investigators received information that NEFF, who had previously lived in Catawba, N.C., might have returned to the area. Working with the Alexander County Sheriff’s Office, NEFF was located and arrested at a Harbortown Drive address on Lake Hickory.

The federal and local agencies participating in FALCON 2008 were the United States Marshals Service (USMS), Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Diplomatic Security Service (DSS), Asheville Police Department Buncombe County District Attorney’s Office, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, Gaston County Police Department, Gaston County Sheriff’s Office, Gastonia Police Department, Henderson County Sheriff’s Office, Iredell County Sheriff’s Office, Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office, Lincolnton Police Department, Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office, and the Statesville Police Department.

All of the fugitive cases submitted for Operation FALCON 2008 will continue to be investigated by the U.S. Marshals Hornets Nest Task Force and Appalachian Fugitive Investigative Strike Team (AFIST).

Since 2005, Operation FALCON has made over 36,500 arrests and cleared over 45,300 warrants. It continues to be the most successful fugitive apprehension effort in U.S. Marshals history.
 

SUMMARY OF ARRESTED AND CLEARED
OFFENSE	ARRESTED	CLEARED
Sex Offenses	7	26
Sex Assaults	7	9
Fail to Register	4	4
Assault	46	61
Burglary/Larceny	24	42
Extortion	3	3
Financial Fraud	12	34
Kidnapping	9	11
Narcotics	38	79
Robbery	26	44
Vehicle Theft	3	3
Weapon Violations	9	10
TOTAL*	151	389

*The arrest of fugitives / clearance of warrants for multiple charge-types will tally in multiple charge-type columns, but will only appear in the "TOTAL" column once.

For more information about Operation FALCON, visit www.usmarshals.gov/falcon08/media.htm.
 

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