Officials, law enforcement work to get gang-related crime out of Region 8

JONESBORO, Ark. (KAIT) - Counties across Region 8 are working together to battle gang-related crime and put a stop to it.

The Criminal Activity Task Force has been working since the start of the year to allocate resources.

During Wednesday’s meeting, the group spoke about building a district-wide database to identify gang members and how to stop them.

Chief Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Grant DeProw said working together will help stop the crimes.

“All of these law enforcement personnel have decided that it is better to act together and pull resources, pull information in order to create a unified resistance to all of this gang activity,” DeProw said.

Law enforcement agencies from Craighead, Clay, Crittenden, Greene, Mississippi and Poinsett counties are working together on the issue.

The Criminal Activity Task Force was created in January after police determined a fatal shooting in Jonesboro in May 2017 was gang related.

For more information on the Criminal Activity Task Force, call 870-935-5553.

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