April 18 (UPI) — Authorities in Northern California have arrested 17 men and confiscated dozens of weapons in a crackdown on gang violence that has for years disrupted the local Sikh community.
Sutter County District Attorney Jennifer Dupre announced the results of Operation Broken Sword during a press conference Monday, describing the law enforcement action as one that not only took those responsible for previous shootings off the streets but thwarted potential future violence.
Those arrested are connected to two warring criminal syndicates that have “plagued” the local peaceful Sikh community since at least 2018, she said.
Violence between the warring groups began as fist fights and sword attacks but escalated to firearms in September of 2021 with a shooting at a wedding party in Yuba City, which is located north of Sacramento.
There have been at least 10 shootings, resulting in 11 men shot, though none died, including five people shot in 2022 in Stockton outside a Sikh temple.
The 17 men were arrested Sunday as law enforcement executed 20 warrants that also netted 41 firearms including AF-15 assault rifles, AK-47s, handguns and a machine gun, she said, adding that five suspects remain at large.
Among those arrested include two men accused of shooting one person at the Yuba City wedding on Sept. 27, 2021. Five others were charged with conspiracy to commit murder and attempted murder in Woodland, Calif. Among those five charged are two men wanted for murder in India, Dupre said.
In March, police working the operation arrested seven men in two vehicles heading to a Sikh parade in Sacramento. Law enforcement also seized four handguns, two assault rifles and a large-capacity magazine in the arrest.
“We were able to stop a mass casualty incident,” she said. “If those weapons had gotten into the parade, it could have been a bloodbath.”
California Attorney General Rob Bonta said the monthslong, multiagency operation is holding those responsible for the harm they have caused to their community.
“No family should ever have to worry about drive-by shootings or other forms of gun violence in the neighborhoods where their children live and play,” he said in a statement. “As a result of this joint law enforcement effort, we’re taking guns off the street and putting suspected gang members and their associates behind bars.”