Kansas City FBI announces results of “Operation Red Card” ahead of World Cup

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (KQTV) -- As Kansas City prepares to welcome the world for the World Cup, a coalition of 13 law enforcement agencies came together for "Operation Red Card."

The operation was a coordinated effort over the past week to clear warrants and apprehend violent offenders, with a goal to make Kansas City a safer place to live, especially ahead of the World Cup.

The results, announced by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Missouri, were as follows:

A total of 442 warrants were cleared, and 170 defendants were charged with federal offenses. Law enforcement seized 247 firearms. In terms of narcotics, authorities confiscated 8.8 pounds of fentanyl, 418 pounds of methamphetamine, 52 pounds of ketamine, 15 pounds of MDMA, and 6 pounds of cocaine. Additionally, $460,872 was seized. Five warrants were cleared for individuals wanted for homicide.

"Operation Red Card represents the tremendous progress that occurs when federal, state, and local agencies collaborate," said U.S. Attorney R. Matthew Price for the Western District of Missouri. "People across greater Kansas City, and visitors this summer, can rest easier knowing that dangerous individuals have been removed from our streets."

The FBI, which conducted Operation Red Card as part of a nationwide effort called "Operation Take Back America", stated it will not stop seeking justice, securing arrests, protecting victims, and confronting violent crime head on.

Agencies participating in the operation included the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security Investigations, the United States Marshals Service, the United States Postal Inspection Service, as well as the Independence Police Department, the Jackson County Drug Task Force, the Jackson County Prosecuting Attorney's Office, the Kansas City Kansas Police Department and the Kansas City Missouri Police Department.