Photo: CBS 12
A big law enforcement crew has brought down several members of a major gang.
"The takedown from this investigation included over 200 law enforcement officers from the Sheriff's Office Violent Crimes Division, SWAT Team, Tactical Intelligence Division, the FBI, the Hendry County Sheriff's Office and the Palm Beach County State Attorney's Office."
Palm Beach County Sheriff's Captain Michael Ott with the Violent Crimes Division says 20 members of the Nawf Way gang, also known as the "Sharks," were busted as part of 'Operation Shark Bait.'
He says the gang operates mostly in the Belle Glade area, but there were arrests in eastern Palm Beach County as well.
"There were ten total search warrants executed in the City of Belle Glade. There was one in the Town of Lake Park, one in the City of Riviera Beach and one which is in LaBelle, out in Hendry County to the west."
All of those happening last Thursday.
The captain says seven guns were seized, along with $10,000 in cash and narcotics including fentanyl, cocaine and marijuana.
Ott says the gang wasn't just focused on making money or asserting authority over rival gangs...
"They're also done to instill fear in their community. All this violence just makes the community feel unsafe."
The suspects, including two juveniles, are each being held on $2 million bond and charged with racketeering, as well as drugs and firearm-related offenses.
Sheriff Ric Bradshaw was also at Thursday's press conference.
"The message to the bad guys is it's not a matter of if we're going to get you. It's a matter of when, because we have a room reserved for you right back here at my hotel."
He says the investigation isn't over and more arrests could be imminent.