Lengthy narcotics investigation busts at least 50

A 40-day operation has resulted in 50 arrests by the St. Paul Police Department's narcotics team.

The operation focused on people who supply drugs to street-level sellers, said John Keating, spokesman for St. Paul Police Department.

"During some of the undercover work our officers were doing they were able to establish relationships with some of the people that were supplying them, Keating said. "In doing so, they were able to purchase narcotics from some of those people and expand the scope beyond some of the previous operations."

Keating said the operation indicated a decrease in the amount of cases involving marijuana. At the same time, there was an increase in the amount of cases involving heroin and crack cocaine.

Officers spent 40 days tracking street-level drug sellers and suppliers using citizen complaints, crime mapping, covert surveillance, patrol operations and specialized investigative work.

The operation found 68 cases involving crack cocaine, 35 cases of marijuana sales, and a dozen cases of heroin sales. Police spokesman John Keating said the operation yielded 122 felony drug charges for 84 people, 50 of whom have been arrested.

"We're looking for a number of other people. We have officers that are rounding up those folks as we speak. We have patrol officers in our specialized units who are out looking for the people that were identified as part of this operation are constant," Keating said. "We'll have most or all of these people in custody shortly"