In April 2022, the Maryland Office of the Attorney General and the Baltimore Police Department (BPD) began a joint investigation into the members and associates of a drugtrafficking organization known as “Wick Squad,” which operated in and around the 2500 block of Edmondson Avenue in West Baltimore. The investigation utilized a variety of investigative methods, including the use of undercover BPD detectives to make controlled purchases of narcotics, including Fentanyl. The investigation culminated in search warrants and arrests in October 2022. The most recent arrest took place in January 2023. In total, the investigation led to the seizure of 11 firearms and large amounts of controlled dangerous substances (CDS), ammunition, and packaging material.
On December 6, 2022, Arthur Beard, 29, of Baltimore, pled guilty before the Honorable Kendra Y. Ausby of the Circuit Court for Baltimore City to loaded handgun on person and possession of CDS. Beard was sentenced to four years of incarceration, suspending all but three years. Upon his release from incarceration, he will be on two years of supervised probation.