HOPKINSVILLE, Tenn.- In
Kentucky, it's been a busy few years for the Hopkinsville Police Department. An
ongoing drug bust has so far led to the arrest of over 50 alleged drug dealers.
They've confiscated about
550 kilograms of marijuana, 67 illegal firearms, 30 kilograms of cocaine and
five kilograms of heroin from the streets because of joint effort between
Hopkinsville Police and Federal investigators.
"We know that what's recovered is only a
portion of what's out there," said David Hale, U.S. Attorney for Western
Kentucky. "But it also speaks to the work being done by the police department
here in Hopkinsville, the sheriff's department in Christian County, and our
federal partners at the DEA and ATF."
Thursday, officers
displayed a small sampling of the illegal firearms, marijuana and crack they have
seized since 2009. It's part of a massive, ongoing drug sweep by the agency. In
Thursday's news conference, they also discussed their efforts to get drugs out
of the community. The Hopkinsville Police Department says since 2009, they've
made 45 drug arrests, including more than a dozen arrests just this summer.
"Those guns out there, we're
losing young people to violent crimes and to death, and we're putting our
officers in harm's way. Those assault rifles back there, those are meant to
kill people and we're not going to tolerate it," said Hopkinsville Police Chief
Guy Howie.
Most of the 45 people
rounded up in this drug sweep are currently in the process of being sentenced
or tried in court.
