HARTFORD, Conn. — A "massive force driving the gun violence" in the Capital City has been removed from the city's streets, Hartford police said Wednesday.
Police said 13 alleged gang members in the organized crime group known as "Get Money Steppas" were arrested for their role in a violent crime spree in Hartford and beyond.
“These are some uniquely violent individuals that were responsible for creating dangerous conditions in the city, and that required a specific response from us," Hartford Police Chief Jason Thody said.
Detectives with the Hartford Police Department have been investigating GMS for nearly a year. According to police, the group is behind a string of homicides, shootings, drug deals, stolen vehicles, and arson.
“Our community is a safer place today because of the 11 months of work by everyone here and by everyone that helped with this case," Thody said.
The Hartford Police Department and State's Attorney's Office teamed up for an 11-month investigation into the group's criminal conduct, building a case against each of its identified members who are charged with violating the Corrupt Organization and Rackeetering Activity (CORA) Act, among other crimes.
Hartford Police spokesperson Lt. Aaron Boisvert said, “The members of this group were a massive force driving the violence in our city. The weapons used in many of these acts were altered in a manner for the firearm to operate as a fully automatic weapon.”
At times, the weapons were used to fire more than 100 rounds in a single shooting incident, police said.
Homicide Supervisor Anthony Rykowski explained that the time it took for the alleged repeat offenders to be removed from the streets was due to people who "don't often want to cooperate with us while people are still out."
"It kind of creates an impasse. That's the advantage to a case like this. Now we're able to remove those individuals. And that's where hopeful that we're going to be able to close some of our unsolved cases," Rykowski said.
While the arrests conclude part of their investigation, detectives said their mission of holding violent criminals accountable continues, no matter how long it takes.
Rykowski said, “If you're going to commit an act like this and you think you got away with it because it's been six months or a year, well, think again.”
Eight of the people charged are already in state or federal custody, with the remaining five have been booked into jail, police said. Some of their bonds are as high as $750,000.
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