Joint enforcement operation aims to ‘keep the streets safe’

ST. JOSEPH, Mo (News-Press NOW) -- The St. Joseph Police department teamed up with the Missouri State Highway Patrol to conduct a joint operation leading to multiple arrests.

The roughly six-hour operation took place on Oct. 4. Of the 57 traffic stops, 49 citations, 39 warnings and three DWI arrests were made during the operation.

"What we want to do is we want to keep the streets safe obviously and with a helicopter added in as a resource it's good because it allows us to keep an eye on the actual suspects from the air," said St. Joseph Police Department Sergeant Richard McGregory. "And we can send less cars that are driving at higher rates of speed after the car. We can slow down, be more efficient in our apprehension and be more precise too."

Sgt. McGregory said they have conducted similar operations in the past. These operations allow them to pursue vehicles not cooperating, and having support from highway patrol through the air helps make this capture safer.

"They're pilots are great, they're spot on, I think they have the best in the business right now," he said. "I think every time we utilize them, it's always a success."

Thermal and night vision helped contribute to the pursuit. The operation covered the whole city and did not target specific areas. Sgt. McGregory said they will continue to be transparent with the community.

"We are always in discussions on how we can do our job more efficiently, keep the streets safer, keep the community safe," Sgt. McGregory said. "We're always in discussions of that but some of those discussions are something that we don't want to let out to the public because we obviously want to always have the upper hand in these situations."