Federal-local task force to target LV crime

Jace Radke

Friday, June 25, 2004 | 9:12 a.m.

A federally sponsored violent crime initiative will include officers from local police departments as members of a task force designed to weed out criminals in Las Vegas over the next six months.

Las Vegas is one of 15 cities that will host a Violent Crime Impact Team, a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosive-led task force, said Daniel Bogden, U.S. attorney for the District of Nevada.

"We've seen the crime rate reduced, and I think this is the feds in Washington saying, 'If we give a little more resources they can further decrease the crime rate,' " Bogden said at a press conference Thursday.

According to the FBI's annual crime report, violent crime rates in Las Vegas and unincorporated Clark County increased by 2 percent last year while declining by 3.2 percent nationwide. At the same time, the population in Las Vegas and unincorporated Clark County has grown by about 4 percent, Bogden noted.

Along with officers from North Las Vegas, Henderson and Metro Police, agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration will also be part of the task force. The U.S. Marshals Service will be avaliable to assist with the arrest of any suspects through its Fugitive Investigative Strike Team.

Investigators will focus on prosecuting people for firearms violations, which often accompany gang activity, illegal drug organizations and organized crime groups. Firearms offenses are the main focus because they are often more readily proven in court than other crimes.

Southern Nevada has already seen a 400 percent increase in federal indictments of gun crimes from 2001 to 2003, as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, another Justice Department program.

Steve Herkins, acting special agent in charge of the San Francisco field division of the ATF, said that he envisions the violent crime teams rotating to other cities should they prove effective.