Operation Trick or Treat Captures Violent Illinois Sex Offenders

If prevention is the best medicine, authorities in Illinois just completed Operation Trick or Treat that perhaps prevented hundreds of Illinois sex offenders from doing bad things on Halloween.

The US Marshals shared some numbers today from Operation Trick or Treat 2. They worked with "112 law enforcement agencies in 22 states" including Illinois from October 1 through October 28. The press release says this operation in Illinois resulted in "331 total arrests, including 129 for failure to register as a sex offender, 74 sex offenders for other offenses, as well as 128 others for various criminal activities".

Part of Operation Trick or Treat 2 included "3,334 sex offender compliance checks" where the US Marshals found 40 with illegal firearms. The operation in Illinois was done with the assistance of the Northern District of Illinois and the Southern District of Illinois.

One of the biggest arrests in this sting was Antonio D. Cooke in the Northern District of Illinois who was a Wisconsin Department of Corrections most wanted sex offender. He had been on the run for 4 years and the Marshals found him at a Chicago hospital.

“Law enforcement personnel from 112 agencies supported this nationwide operation. I want to express my gratitude to the deputy marshals, detectives, officers, and analysts, not as the operation commander, but as the father of a 5-year-old son,” said Bryon Carroll, Operation Commander for Operation Trick or Treat 2. “The Halloween season is safer across America because of their commitment to such an important mission.”