Grand jury indictments have been handed down against 34 defendants accused of openly dealing fentanyl, methamphetamine and crack cocaine in the East Village neighborhood, it was announced Monday. “Operation Street Sweeper” was conducted last September and October in areas that San Diego polic e identified as hotspots for drug sales, including 16 and 17th streets, K and C streets and Imperial Avenue and Broadway. Surveillance and undercover drug purchases conducted throughout the operation led to the recent indictments, as well as the arrests of 23 of the defendants in East Village last Thursday, according to the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office. “This operation reflects a coordinated, proactive law enforcement response to the community we serve, with the goal of improving the quality of life in a downtown area that continues to face public safety challenges,” San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan said in a statement. “The East Village community deserves to be safe and not have their families subjected to open drug dealing and associated crime. This operation targeted the drug dealers that were selling toxic drugs like fentanyl, methamphetamine, and cocaine base. It’s clear that the heightened drug sales are also the reason we have heightened drug overdoses in the same areas.” The “open-air” drug markets that were the focus of Operation Street Sweeper not only facilitated drug distribution, but contributed to other associated crimes in the surrounding area, prosecutors said. The indictments charge the defendants with crimes related to drug sales and possession. Operation Street Sweeper was conducted by San Diego Police, the Homeland Security Investigations Fentanyl Abatement Suppression Team, and with assistance from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, which is prosecuting three additional defendants connected to the case. “The residents of East Village have long asked for more enforcement on drug-related offenses and Operation Street Sweeper did just that,” said San Diego Police Chief Scott Wahl. “With this operation, we targeted open drug use and narcotic sales occurring in East Village, something children and families walked by every day. With our law enforcement partners, we were able to have a major impact on the quality of life in downtown San Diego.” ...read more read less