CLEVELAND — The arrest last month of a man wanted for a violent home invasion in Elyria helped the Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force reach a milestone.

Leonardo “Joker” Rodriguez, 36, who was apprehended Oct. 7 in Puerto Rico, was the task force’s 20,000th arrest since it was created in 2003.

The task force is run by the U.S. Marshals Service out of Cleveland. The multi-agency organization has tracked down suspected killers, con artists and rapists.

“The dedicated men and women of the task force are our backbone; together they risk their lives daily as one unit and apprehend the worst of the worst in order to make our communities safe. I am proud of each of them,” said Marshal Pete Elliott, who formed the task force.

The task force consists of over 250 law enforcement officers from more than 80 federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.

Participating law enforcement from Lorain County are the Amherst Police Department, Avon Police Department, Avon Lake Police Department, Elyria Police Department, Lorain County Adult Probation, Lorain County Sheriff’s Office, Lorain Police Department, North Ridgeville Police Department, Oberlin Police Department, Vermilion Police Department, State of Ohio Adult Parole Authority and the Sheffield Village Police Department, according to the task force’s Web site.

On April 12, 2007, Rodriguez and several others were armed with weapons and disguised as police officers when they raided a home at 856 Livermore Lane in Elyria.

They bound the people in the house with tape, physically assaulted them and stole two vehicles and a large amount of money.

“This case has been a priority for our Lorain County Division since day 1,” said Assistant Chief Deputy U.S. Marshal Andrew Deserto.

The task force has received numerous honors over the last six years from federal, state and local officials for its outstanding accomplishments, including in 2008 when the task force was named the outstanding fugitive task force in the nation by the cirector of the U.S. Marshals Service. The Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force is considered a model for other fugitive task forces throughout the nation.

“They have taken some of the most violent predators and fugitives off of our streets and made a tremendous difference,” said U.S. Attorney Steven Dettelbach.

View current fugitives on the U.S. Marshals Web site.

Contact Rona Proudfoot at 329-7124 or rpoudfoot@chroniclet.com.

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