Exclusive: Bust at East Harlem housing projects leads to 30 arrests

EAST HARLEM, Manhattan (WABC) -- Thirty people were arrested in a major gang takedown targeting East Harlem housing projects Tuesday morning.

The suspects were arrested as part of a joint NYPD/FBI operation at the East River Houses.

Suspects were brought out by New York City Police Department officers and federal agents just after 5 a.m.

The suspects are all accused of being involved in narcotics and firearms dealing.

They will be arraigned later Tuesday before a federal judge in Lower Manhattan.

The arrests are the culmination of an investigation ongoing for several years, targeting the East River houses and other city run projects.

The neighborhood has seen a recent spike in gang activity and shootings, most recently the fatal shooting of 16-year-old Chico Tavarez outside the Jefferson Houses. Law enforcement is aware of an ongoing dispute between members of the Jefferson Houses and nearby Wagner Houses, both city-run housing complexes.