In huge sting, police nab 37 for drug, weapons crimes
Hundreds of officers still searching for suspects throughout the country
Sue Surkes is The Times of Israel's environment reporter
Thirty-seven people suspected of drug- and weapons-related offenses were arrested early Monday morning in a massive countrywide sting operation.
Hundreds of officers from the Lahav 433 crimes unit fanned out over dozens of locations as part of Operation 565 to pinpoint and bust suspects, the police said.
The locations included the the mixed Jewish-Arab cities of Tel Aviv-Jaffa, Ramle in central Israel and Acco in the north, the Jewish cities of Harish and Pardes Hanna on the coastal plain, and the Arab cities of Qalasawe in central Israel, Sakhnin in the north and Lakia, a Bedouin town in the Negev.
The suspects were set to be brought to the Rishon Lezion Magistrate’s Court starting Monday afternoon. Their identities and those of their families were put under a gag order.
The arrests followed months of work by two undercover agents, one of them a police officer. The agents focused on illegal trafficking in weapons by Arabs and drugs offenses in Netanya and other parts of the country.
Their undercover work included taking part in tens of weapons and drug deals and gathering evidence against an “influential layer of criminals,” a police statement said.
Some of the criminals are also suspected of property offenses, and others of planning to injure fellow criminals because of disputes.
During Monday’s sting, police seized cash and drugs. Drugs and arms “purchased” by the undercover agents included nine weapons of different kinds, more than 1,000 bullets, nearly three kilograms (6.6 pounds) of marijuana and more than 700 grams (1.5 pounds) of cocaine.
The commander of Lahav 433’s International Crime Investigations, Unit Brig. Gen. Yigal Ben Shalom, said the war on serious crime demanded “creativity and the use of unconventional tools” and that one of the best tools was the use of undercover agents.
The Times of Israel Community.