Operation "Walk in the Park" leads to 17 felony arrests in Riverside street gang
California Attorney General Rob Bonta on Thursday announced the success of a multiagency effort by local law enforcement who arrested nearly 20 members of a Riverside street gang.
The effort started with a murder at Bordwell Park in Riverside. Clues to the unsolved case led to the arrest of a massive street gang operation. On December 22, 2020, 32-year-old Cedric Dempsey was found shot in the head. Investigators said they located the suspect in the killing of the father of nine just about a week ago.
"Detectives served a search warrant at a residence in our community after receiving information that the suspect was manufacturing and selling firearms to gang members," Chief Larry Gonzalez, with the Riverside Police Department, said.
SWAT officers arrested 50-year-old Arthur Akins III, but it was during this investigation that authorities across the Inland Empire focused on another murder in Moreno Valley, also back in 2020.
"They wrongfully targeted our victim. Mr. Henderson is a 43-year-old father. Just moments prior, he had been holding his 3-day-old son," Riverside County Sheriff's Chief Deputy Misty Reynolds said.
That suspect, Darnell Tate was linked to Atkins, who investigators said played a large role in a gang. Detectives believe Atkins sourced weapons to gang members across the Inland Empire.
"Five of the handguns were ghost guns and detectives also recovered a 3-D printer to manufacture those," Chief Gonzalez said.
This led to Operation "Walk in the Park," a joint effort by Riverside Police Department and Riverside County Sheriff's Department authorities led to 17 felony arrests, solved two homicide cases and prevented one shooting after the gang's actions were addressed with the California Department of Justice.
"For families, nothing is more important than having the peace of mind to know that the neighborhoods children play in and the community where they live and work is safe," Bonta said in the press release Thursday. "Today's operation is one step toward healing the Riverside community from the ills of gun violence. While we can never replace the lives taken by this violent gang, we hope that today's announcement will bring some justice for the families and community left behind."
The investigation, which spanned over the greater part of two years, also led to the seizure of 55 firearms - six of which were ghost guns - and two pounds each of fentanyl, cocaine and heroin, and a half-pound of methamphetamine. Additionally, 200 MDMA pills and $65,952 in cash were also confiscated.
"I can't stress enough the dedication from all the investigators who literally spent thousands of hours on this case. This was truly a collaboration and we could not be more thankful for the professional working relationship we have with all the agencies involved," said Riverside Police Chief Larry Gonzalez.
Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco echoed that sentiment in a similar statement applauding the efforts of all of the agencies involved, which read in part: "The impact gang violence has on innocent victims has no place in any community and we will continue to relentlessly pursue gangs with the strongest possible response by law enforcement."
At a press conference on Thursday, Bonta continued with a warning for other California street gangs, saying: "This is DOJ's fifth gang takedown in the last year, and I promise all those engaging in organized crime, threatening our neighborhoods...you're next. You can bet we are working on takedown number six, number seven, number eight, and well beyond."
The two murder suspects, Atkins and Tate, could face life in without the possibility of parole if convicted.
