Crime taskforce’s  cases up by 65 %

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Updated: March 11, 2012 8:18AM

An annual report issued last week by West Suburban Directed Gang Enforcement taskforce mostly highlighted a number of headline-grabbing arrests that took place in 2011.

But it also addressed a strategy the multijurisdictional law enforcement group has grown fond of: long-term investigation.

WEDGE is a special unit composed of officers from Berwyn, Cicero, Elmwood Park, Forest Park, Oak Park, Riverside, River Forest and Stickney. Since late 2008, the group has worked to tackle regional drug and gang problems. Presently, the task force is working to craft a long-term strategy to deal with those issues.

This means there will likely be more of a focus on investigative work in the future, according to WEDGE Chairman Tom Weitzel, who is also Riverside’s police chief. It’s a direction the task force already seems headed in, though, as 30 more investigations took place last year than when the group was first formed — a 65 percent bump.

“The long-term investigations, they seem to produce more,” he said.

To support his theory, he referenced a drug bust in River Forest last year.

WEDGE officers arrested 18-year-old Darryl Greer after learning that he was bringing heroin from Chicago to River Forest on a regular basis.

WEDGE used intelligence gathered by River Forest detectives who went undercover and purchased heroin from Greer twice.

Greer was eventually arrested and convicted. He is currently serving time in state prison.

Moving forward, Weitzel said that WEDGE wants to focus its intelligence operations on going after bigger targets within the region’s drug trade and gang circles.

Last year, WEDGE assisted the U.S. Marshal Services in capturing James Kirkendall, who was wanted in connection with a 2010 federal drug conspiracy case dubbed “Operation Bird Cage.”

The case was given to WEDGE officers and they managed to nab Kirkendall at a Maywood residence.

River Forest Deputy Chief Craig Rutz said the task force’s “regional focus” makes it successful.

Nonetheless, the WEDGE continues to take a “let’s expand” approach, according to Weitzel.