HISTORY OF THE AKRON POLICE STREET CRIMES / GANG UNIT
The Gang Unit started as a one person unit in the detective bureau. Sgt. Roz Harris, after attending an education program for G.R.E.A.T. (Gang Resistance Education and Training), partnered up with the Street Narcotics Unit and became an intelligence gathering gang detective. The unit eventually expanded into a larger unit with several detectives under the leadership of Sgt. Tom Hooper. The unit investigated gang related crimes and gathered intelligence on gangs and gang members, creating a listing of most of the active gangs in the Akron area.

After Sgt. Hooper’s retirement, Sgt. Reese took command of the unit and continued in the mission of primarily gathering intelligence information on gang members. The gang unit was then transferred under Patrol and officers were able to utilize both plainclothes and uniform operations.

The current Street Crimes / Gang Unit is a five man unit led by Sgt. Zimmerman. In 1998, the Gang Unit became the coordinators of the Summit County Gang Task Force and started gathering intelligence on countywide gang and threatgroup problems.

Since January 1, 1999, the mission of the Gang Unit increased to an enforcement unit. With the enactment of the “Participating in a Criminal Gang” statute, the gang unit had an enforcement tool to effectively fight the ever increasing gang problem. The Gang Unit has a total of 52 gang convictions, to date, on members of 13 different gangs.

If you have any information about new tagging (bubble type writing or extensive artwork) or gang graffiti (gang's method of communicating with rival gangs, own gang members, law enforcement, and community) in your neighborhood, please contact the gang unit
at (330) 375-2911, or email The Gang Unit.