FAYETTEVILLE, NC – The U.S. Marshals Eastern District of North Carolina Violent Fugitive Task Force, in coordination with various federal, state and local partners, recently wrapped up an operation dubbed Zero Hour II. This operation combined the expansive resources of the participating agencies with the goal of locating subjects wanted on outstanding warrants and conducting searches of high-risk individuals under the supervision of the North Carolina Department of Public Safety.
Conducted in Robeson County June 11 – 13 and Cumberland County June 25 – 27, this operation was the culmination of months of planning, and resulted in the arrest of 75 subjects in Robeson County and 99 subjects in Cumberland County. 442 charges were cleared in the two counties and 42 firearms were recovered. Additionally, $66,922 in U.S. currency was seized along with quantities of a variety of narcotics including marijuana, cocaine and methamphetamine. Searches were attempted at the residences of 337 high-risk probationers or parolees, with 134 searches successfully completed. Participating agencies will continue to investigate information developed during the operation and additional arrests are likely.
Michael East, United States Marshal for the Eastern District of North Carolina, commented, “I would like to thank all of the men and women of our federal, state and local law enforcement partners. Operations such as these take substantial planning and would not be possible without the collaborative efforts of everyone involved. Additional operations are forthcoming and we are coming to your town in the very near future.”
Robert J. Higdon, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, stated, “The United States Attorney’s Office is committed to the continued partnership with all local, state, and federal law enforcement and District Attorney’s Offices to make Eastern North Carolina a safer place. This type of effort is an essential part of our drive to reduce violent crime, remove the worst offenders from our communities, and take back North Carolina from violent criminals and drug traffickers. Thank you to the officers who put their safety on the line for us in a very serious way over these last few weeks in conducting these enforcement operations.”
Significant arrests included:
- Javaras Hammonds, 20, of Lumberton, who was charged with First Degree Murder and Robbery with a Dangerous Weapon in relation to an incident that occurred in Lumberton on June 5.
- Michael Alvarez, 31, of Fuquay Varina, who escaped from a NC DPS facility in Lumberton on June 12. Alvarez was captured within hours of the escape and a female who assisted in the escape was also arrested and charged.
- Anthony Coar, 74, of Fayetteville, who was charged with violating the terms of his federal Supervised Release. Coar was found to be in possession of inappropriate images as well as devices to access internet content.
- Marcus Bryan, 21, of Fayetteville, who was charged with Attempted First Degree Murder, Assault with a Deadly Weapon with Intent to Kill Inflicting Serious Injury, and Conspiracy to Commit Robbery with a Dangerous Weapon in relation to an incident that occurred in Fayetteville on June 7.
The following agencies participated in this operation:
Robeson County – U.S. Marshals Service; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; Fairmont Police Department; Lumberton Police Department; N.C. Department of Public Safety; N.C. Information Sharing and Analysis Center; Pembroke Police Department; Red Springs Police Department; Robeson County District Attorney’s Office; Robeson County Sheriff’s Office; and, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina.
Cumberland County – U.S. Marshals Service; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; Cumberland County District Attorney’s Office; Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office; Drug Enforcement Administration; Fayetteville Police Department; Hope Mills Police Department; N.C. Department of Public Safety; N.C. Information Sharing and Analysis Center; Spring Lake Police Department; and, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina.
