Governor Gavin Newsom announced that the number of officers of the California Highway Patrol ?CHP, for its acronym in English? deployed in a joint operation in San Francisco, while also authorizing specific police force increases to improve public safety and stop fentanyl trafficking.
The officer surge will aim to conduct targeted surges with law enforcement partners to fight crime and take more crackdown on the fentanyl crisis plaguing San Francisco.
Personnel assigned to the expanded operation are expected to include some of the more than 100 new CHP officers scheduled to graduate from the CHP Academy this week, as well as officers active within the Golden Gate Division.
"CHP's recent results in San Francisco are nothing short of extraordinary: In just six weeks, agency workers seized enough fentanyl to potentially kill the city nearly three times over, multiple firearms, and stolen property," Newsom noted.
“Today, I authorize a 100 percent increase in personnel to bolster the impact of this proven operation, as well as authorize targeted waves to crack down on crime in the city. Working together with our local, state and federal partners, we are committed to cleaning up the streets of San Francisco."
In her opportunity, the mayor of San Francisco, London Breed, assured that in order to be successful in the long term, it is necessary to sustain and expand this work at the local, state and federal levels.
For the chief of the San Francisco Police Department "SFPD", Bill Scott, "our residents, business owners and visitors to our city deserve to feel safe and we are making progress in the interruption of the drug markets that are causing so much misery in our streets”.
He said that, working in partnership with the CHP, an unprecedented amount of fentanyl and other deadly narcotics have been seized in recent weeks, and he looks forward to building on that success.
In addition to doubling the number of uniformed officers assigned to this operation in the city, as part of today's announcement, the Governor also authorized CHP to work with local law enforcement partners to conduct targeted crime crackdowns. key crime in the city.
The joint task force's unannounced operations are expected to target illicit drugs and weapons and lead to the arrest of drug dealers and others involved in various types of criminal activity.
On the other hand, Newsom ordered the California National Guard ?CalGuard? increase staff in San Francisco to facilitate the development of the city's strategic plan that will address the challenges of open-air drug markets and the broader effects those markets have on San Francisco.
In addition, CalGuard has been directed to identify ways to further increase staffing in San Francisco in support of the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program. of Northern California.
Since the joint public safety operation began on May 1, 2023, the CHP has seized 8.1 kilos of fentanyl and made 115 felony and misdemeanor arrests in and around the Tenderloin.
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