CLEVELAND (WJW) — Top local law enforcement leaders say they just wrapped up a big sweep of some of the most violent wanted criminals in Cleveland, but city leaders also faced questions from the I-Team about the homicide rate.

At a news conference on Monday, the mayor announced police had completed a month-long campaign, “Operation Clean Sweep.”

Police officials say investigators hauled in dozens of suspects wanted for murder, sex crimes, carjackings and more. Cleveland police got a lot of help from the US Marshals and other federal agencies.

Meantime, the mayor declared the city’s homicide rate has dropped 12%.

Yet, numbers kept in the police homicide unit showed on Monday a drop of 1%.

One hundred thirty homicides, so far, this year with 132 to this same date last year. So, at the news conference on the fugitive sweep, we asked about that.

Safety Director Karrie Howard said, “The numbers that we arrived at are the numbers that we  have working with the FBI and the County (Medical) Examiners Office. When it comes out to what is ruled a homicide and something else other than a homicide, we work on different numbers.”

However, police have told us before, the most up-to-date numbers are kept in the homicide unit.

And, ultimately, the police chief acknowledged, as of Monday, 130 cases for 2022 to date, a drop of 1%.

As for rounding up fugitives, the US Marshals have a task force with local police doing it every day. But, some Cleveland police units are so short-staffed, that restricts how much they can do to find the wanted.