ST. PETERSBURG -- St. Petersburg police say they've arrested more than two dozen people in a multi-agency drug crackdown.
Police Chief Anthony Holloway says his department began working to find a common thread in a spike in murders of teens and young adults, and discovered an operation bringing a semi-truck full of drugs into the Tampa Bay area every week, worth one to three million dollars.
He says drug dealers set appointments to pick up their shipments when the truck roared in.
Police worked with several local and state agencies, including FBI, ATF, FDLE, the Pinellas, Manatee and Hillsborough sheriffs, and the Clearwater and Tampa police departments. Around 130 subpoenas have been served. 26 have been arrested so far, and Holloway says more arrests are coming.
Detectives seized three million dollars worth of marijuana, a variety of drugs, six vehicles and 15 guns, three of which were stolen. Holloway says ballistics testing has tied the drug ring to shootings throughout Pinellas County.
Photo: St Petersburg Police/Canva