RESERVE — Five Reserve men are part of a larger crime operation trafficking in crack sales through violence and witness intimidation, local and federal authorities said this week.

Troy Kendrick Jr., 33; Garrick Jones, 37; Travis Carter, 37; Michael Sanders, 34; and Reshad Frank, 38, all of Reserve, were charged Thursday in a nine-count indictment announced by U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite.

The indictment follows a multi-month investigation spearheaded by the St. John Sheriff’s Office Special Operations Division and United States Drug Enforcement Agency.

“We’ve been working a surveillance operation with our federal partners that resulted in the arrest of five people and there are more to come,” Sheriff Mike Tregre said. “You can call them a team, you can call them a gang, but they all know each other and are involved in this operation that we are still looking into. There will be more (arrests) to follow.”

Alluding to multiple ongoing investigations, Tregre said local investigators got to the point where they needed more resources than are available through the St. John the Baptist Sheriff’s Office.

According to Tregre, federal partners provided additional manpower, monitoring equipment and air support, saying air bound surveillance is being utilized in this investigation

Without elaborating, Tregre said the investigation “probably saved a life” and resulted in removing illegal guns off the streets of St. John Parish.

According to the Indictment, Kendrick, Jones, Carter, Sanders and Frank conspired to distribute crack, with Kendrick, Jones and Carter each also charged with distribution of crack. A timeline of the alleged drug sales was not released.

Jones and Carter are also charged with retaliating against a witness for information provided to law enforcement; however, details of those charges were not released.

DEA Special Agent in Charge Stephen G. Assam said drugs and violence impact small towns as much as large cities.

“No matter the amounts of drugs they sell, drug dealers breed crime in our neighborhoods and are a danger to our children,” he said. “The arrests in this investigation demonstrate to the citizens of St. John the Baptist Parish that federal, state and local law enforcement can come together and accomplish great things.”

Authorities said Kendrick and Jones, each of whom had previously been convicted of felonies, are charged with illegal possession of a firearm by a felon, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, indicating those crimes took place Aug. 17.

According to authorities, Kendrick possessed an FN Herschel, model Five-Seven pistol, a Lorain, model L380, .380 caliber pistol, a Taurus, model PT140, .40 caliber pistol, a Rugger, model SR45, .45 caliber pistol and a Magnum Research, Inc., model Desert Eagle, .44 caliber pistol. Jones possessed a Smith and Wesson .38 caliber pistol. Polite said the suspects face millions in collective fines and decades behind bars, if convicted.

“This indictment is an example of our region’s outstanding cooperation across local, state and federal law enforcement,” Polite said. “Collectively, we are committed to stopping drug trafficking and the violence that often accompanies it.”