Seven men charged following drug bust near Cook Co. Sheriff's Office substation in South Loop
Seven men are facing felony charges after authorities said they used a corridor in the South Loop to peddle drugs.
Cook County Sheriff's deputies went undercover to catch the men, and all they had to do was step outside the sheriff's substation.
At the intersection along Roosevelt and Wabash, there has been a constant concern for South Loop residents for quite some time. When the substation popped up this past summer, the sheriff said some crooks were bold enough to commit crimes right in front, including those seven men who are now in jail.
James Macklin, 47, Richard King, 34, Fred Clarke, 33, Diane Jones, 37, Edward Coaks, 27, and Kylen Washington, 21, all from Chicago, were charged with manufacturing and delivering cannabis.
The seventh suspect, Eric Harrington, 36, was already at Cook County Jail, where he was being held on unrelated charges. He was processed on Wednesday on a felony cannabis delivery charge.
"Wanted to get the dealers if it took us higher, awesome, but if not, we definitely wanted to get the dealers," Sheriff Tom Dart said.
Dart's office is touting the arrest of the seven men accused of dealing drugs in this South Loop corridor.
"They gotta be pretty stupid thinking that's going to go on for any length of time," Dart said.
CBS News Chicago has heard from people in the South Loop about the ongoing crimes near the area. Crimes, Dart said, deputies have witnessed too.
"In regards to these crime issues folks in the area are telling us about and we're seeing it," he said.
Over the past few weeks, the sheriff's office started an undercover drug sting to not just catch the buyers but the dealers. The people dart said were bringing some of the problems to the South Loop right in front of the substation, which opened in late June.
"It became clear it was an area with an uptick of activity," Dart said.
He understands others may try to come take over the corner the accused dealers were working, but he offers this to anyone thinking this busy corridor is open for business.
"I think this makes it clear we are going to be there, we're not going anywhere, and we're willing to do long and short-term operations, and if you're interested in testing my food selection at the jail, keep doing, and we'll keep arresting you," he said.
The presence of deputies in the South Loop, either patrolling or questioning individuals one can be easily spotted.
Dart also reminds residents they're working in cooperation with the Chicago police.
"Our only measure of success will be none of this is going on anymore, and if it continues, we have to reevaluate because it can't go on anymore. This has to stop," he said.
The sheriff acknowledges the red line stop here is contributing to some of the ongoing problems, but he vows to stay the course. The people arrested in this operation were accused of selling marijuana mostly.
It's very clear we know what we're dealing with, so we're going to be very involved there for a while. A while means not a few months. We don't have an end date," Dart said.