About 20 percent of inmates at DeKalb County Jail are affiliated with gangs in some way, said DeKalb County Sheriff Roger Scott.

According to dictionary.com, a gang is defined as a group of persons associated for some criminal or other antisocial purpose.

Scott said while gang members reside in various places within DeKalb County, gang activity is minimal.

DeKalb Police Lt. Gary Spangler said the DeKalb Police Department’s gang unit has identified 54 gangs and over 360 gang members in the city, over 300 of whom gave police local addresses in Dekalb.

According to the DeKalb Police Department 2010 annual report, 362 gang members and 151 gang associates have come into contact with DeKalb Police since 2008. 302 of those members and associates stated they currently have a local DeKalb address.

Spangler declined to name the prominent gangs active within the city because naming them may provide the gangs with a level of credibility.

“Gangs look for name recognition,” Spangler said.

The DeKalb Police gang unit is a two-man unit that focuses mainly on gang activity, Spangler said. The unit also engages in other functions such as drug activity and responding to routine calls as needed.

Scott said the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office does not have a specific task force for dealing with gangs but focuses on drug activity.

“Much of the drug traffic [in the county] is involved with gangs,” Scott said.

In an Oct. 30 Northern Star article, Spangler said heroin is the top “problem drug” in DeKalb. The city has seen an increase in the sale and usage of heroin. The problem stems from several heroin overdoses that have occurred in DeKalb County, Spangler said.

The sheriff’s office works with other agencies, such as the federal Drug Enforcement Agency in Rockford, the North Central Narcotics Task Force and the DeKalb Police Department, in order to combat drug and gang activity in the county.