President Trump and FBI Director Patel say the program led to more than 8,700 arrests and a 20 percent drop in crime.
President Donald Trump and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel announced the results of the FBI’s Operation Summer Heat from the Oval Office on Oct. 15.
According to the president, federal law enforcement was “in many cities that people didn’t know about,” and the results were substantial.
Here’s what we know about the operation.
Project Overview
The operation targeted violent criminals, gang members, fugitives, property crimes, child exploitation, and drug trafficking. With a mission to “crush violent crime” with the use of federal resources supporting state and local agencies, the government operated in many major cities across the country.
“We kept it a little quiet, and it had a big impact,” Trump said from the White House, saying the program arrested thousands of the “most dangerous and violent people in the world.”
The program ran from June to September of this year, and according to the president, the FBI and its partners have been working alongside local law enforcement in a number of cities, without getting the same kind of media coverage as places like Washington, DC.
Trump also praised the work of federal partners in the nation’s capital, saying, “You can have a child walk right through the middle of Washington, DC, and nothing’s going to happen.”
City Results
The FBI reported on the statistics from individual cities—including Boston, Denver, and Houston—outlining what was accomplished in the period June to September with the help of the FBI and the Department of Justice (DOJ).
In Boston, the FBI made 404 arrests and was ranked third among the FBI’s field offices in total arrests during the operation.
The Boston office includes all of Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island.
“This record-setting operation removed gang members, drug traffickers, child predators, and bank robbers from our streets,” said Ted E. Docks, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Boston Division.
