Reactive Law Enforcement

Georgia police sting nets 49 arrests, hundreds of weapons

Atlanta (CNN) -- A storefront sting in Atlanta led to the indictment of 49 people on drug trafficking, firearms and theft charges, state and federal officials announced Wednesday.

The seven-month undercover effort was led by officers with the Atlanta Police Department and agents in the Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms, Tobacco and Explosives.

The operation adopted the name "ATL Blaze" from the store that posed as a tobacco shop but trafficked weapons and drugs.

Undercover agents posing as store managers and employees were approached by weapons and drug traffickers and convicted felons about buying guns, drugs and stolen property.

Police recovered 257 handguns, 60 rifles, 46 shotguns and 10 sawed-off shotguns.

"This undercover operation was strategically aimed at felons and violent criminals who are flooding our streets with illegal guns," said U.S. Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. "This was a proactive, not reactive, approach to law enforcement to get guns out of the hands of criminals."

Atlanta Police Chief George Turner said he was not surprised at the number of weapons collected, but was shocked by the quality of the weapons.

"Crime knows no borders, and recognizes no uniforms or agency insignia; neither should our efforts to combat those who seek to traffic in criminal activity," he said.

Officials estimate the operation cost $400,000. It was unclear how that cost was shared between federal and state officials.

Last year the city of Atlanta collected 1,700 weapons from individuals involved with crime, Turner said.

The case continues to be investigated by special agents with the ATF.

49 People Face Charges In Firearms Sting - News Story - WSB Atlanta

ATLANTA -- Law enforcement officers struggling to keep illegal guns off Atlanta's streets tried a new strategy to turn the tables on their adversaries: Instead of chasing the armed criminals, they let the criminals come to them.

49 People Face Charges In Firearms Sting

U.S. Attorney Sally Quillian Yates announced Wednesday that a lengthy undercover operation led to charges against 49 people and took more than 300 illegal guns off the streets.

The sting was launched about seven months ago when agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Atlanta Police Department set up a shop in southwest Atlanta called "ATL Blaze." The store sold clothes and tobacco — and its operators quietly told customers they would gladly buy any guns they could, too.

It didn't take long for the word to get out. Soon, prosecutors said, the agents were purchasing all sorts of illegal weapons — sawed-off shotguns, tiny handguns, high-caliber rifles. All told, the undercover officers took in 373 guns. The entire operation cost about $400,000.

But the sting didn't just yield weapons. Sometimes, prosecutors said, the suspects also unwittingly gave up valuable details about other crimes.

In one case, a defendant told the agents he burglarized a store in Peachtree City. Soon thereafter, he was charged with the crime. In another, officers swooped in on a group of six defendants who had told the undercover officers they were plotting to rob a drug dealer.

The 49 people face an array of charges, including possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, conspiring to illegally sell guns, drug trafficking and armed robbery. Authorities have arrested 27 of them, and the remaining ones are being sought by police.

Yates said the sting was the result of a more forward-thinking strategy to remove illegal guns from Atlanta's high-crime areas.

"This was a proactive, not reactive, approach to law enforcement to get guns out of the hands of criminals," said Yates.

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