Street Crimes Task Force nets more than 20 arrests in Poplar Bluff raid

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. -- Nearly 25 arrests were made Friday as members of the multiagency Street Crimes Task Force converged on Poplar Bluff during the group's first visit to town. When the operation ended, officers had taken down a suspected methamphetamine lab, seized a sawed-off shotgun and a substantial amount of suspected heroin and gathered intelligence information. "In speaking with [Sikeston Department of Public Safety] chief Drew Juden and various members of the Street Crimes Task Force, we considered this an outstanding success," Poplar Bluff police chief Danny Whiteley said. Participating Missouri cities are Cape Girardeau, Poplar Bluff, Sikeston and Charleston. "We all have common elements and participants that frequent all four cities," Whiteley said.