PITTSBURGH — The FBI in Pittsburgh, as well as federal, state and local authorities, executed a series of arrests and search warrants across the city on Thursday morning.
According to the FBI, they were in connection with an investigation into a “large-scale violent drug trafficking operation.”
Authorities said there is no threat to the public.
A neighbor shared video with Channel 11 showing FBI agents and SWAT officers surrounding a home on Shaler Street in Duquesne Heights Thursday morning.
In a news conference, we learned the raid was a part of a several-month-long investigation into a cocaine trafficking ring that started in the Hill District and expanded into several different communities in the city of Pittsburgh and surrounding communities.
The investigation led to the indictment of 15 Pittsburgh residents on cocaine trafficking and conspiracy charges.
“Terror for sure. Being a mom with kids, for that to be so close to home, is definitely scary for sure,” a local mom told Channel 11.
She and her child were at the park directly across the street from the home that was raided in Duquesne Heights, where FBI agents say they worked to get a violent drug dealer into custody.
“That is terrifying,” the mom said. “It actually made my blood cold. Especially because this is a very popular park. We come here so many times out of the week. So do all of these other kids. To have that right across the street is very nerve-wracking and scary.”
In addition to cocaine, federal agents recovered guns, heroin and fentanyl that the FBI says were being trafficked to the entire Southwestern PA region.
“Every pill, powder, bags that is sold on the streets of our city and streets of our neighborhoods leaves a trail of victims. Behind every oversight is a family that is forever changed,” Richard Evanchec, special agent in charge, told Channel 11.
Evanchec says the drugs were going to street-level gangs.
“When we’re talking about gangs in this scenario, they are really street-level or neighborhood groups of individuals who are wreaking havoc on the community, poisoning those communities with deadly narcotics and just really bringing violence to those communities,” he added.
As someone who lives in one of those neighborhoods, the mom we spoke with is grateful for their work.
“Thank you and please keep doing your job the right way and protecting these children,” she said.
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