MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Mayor Paul Young and Police Chief C. J. Davis touted results of recent crime-fighting operations in Memphis on Wednesday.

“The era of unchecked violence in our city is over,” Young said in a news conference focused on arrests made in the city’s Rolling Thunder operation.

City officials said Operation Rolling Thunder, which ran from April 23 to May 10, resulted in:

  • Over 160 arrests, including 50 known gang members
  • 15 illegal firearms seized, including a Glock switch and extended magazines
  • Seizures of fentanyl and other dangerous narcotics
  • 10 individuals indicted on federal charges, including six gang members
  • A significant decrease in gang-related crimes during the operation’s active period
Operation Rolling Thunder

“We don’t plan on stopping here. This is just the beginning,” Chief Davis said.

Young said the city began seeing a sharp increase in crime and homicides that resulted in 398 homicides in 2023. However, those numbers are down this year.

“We have a crime problem in our community. But I also want everyone to know that the ship is turning, and it’s a very big ship,” Young said.

Memphis Murder Map 2025

The news conference comes a few days after FBI Director Kash Patel told a Fox News host that Memphis was the “homicide capital of the U.S.A,” and his agency would be sending additional resources to the city.

Cash and guns seized in crime-fighting operations are displayed on a table in City Hall.

It also comes on the same day that the Department of Justice announced it has closed its “Biden-era” investigation into the Memphis Police Department and retracted its findings of constitutional violations.

WREG tracked previously covered cases and found that at least 15 apprehended accused gang members have been charged with violent crimes once.

Rico Lee and David Lee Courtesy of MPD

In 2021, Tremayne Scales was 15 years old at the time. He was arrested after 16-year-old Emmit Beasley was killed during a funeral procession in north Memphis. Online records show Scales’ charges were later dismissed, but the reason is unknown.

Martavious and La’Cameron Jenkins

Recently, two cousins, Martavious Jenkins and La’ Cameron Jenkins, were arrested in a deadly domestic violence shooting in Cleoford last month. 

Young addressed the DOJ’s decision at the news conference, saying, “It really reaffirms the approach that we have embarked upon. It really doesn’t change anything as far as our commitment to integrity in policing.”