A year-long drug investigation by the Mount Airy Police Department has led to 193 warrants against 45 people, many of whom were arrested during a roundup on Wednesday.

The massive drug sweep unfolded during the early morning hours, when city and other officers met at the police department for a briefing and then went out to locate and arrest as many individuals as possible.

Assisting Mount Airy officers were members of the Surry County Sheriff’s Office, Dobson Police Department and State Bureau of Investigation.

Of the 45 individuals sought Wednesday, 24 were located, arrested and taken to the Mount Airy Police Department for processing. Each person taken into custody then was transported to a magistrate’s office for the setting of bond.

Six of the 45 people already were incarcerated in other county, state and federal facilities, police said.

The 15 people not found have been entered into the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) database, which alerts officers in other jurisdictions that they are wanted in Mount Airy.

Authorities said the 193 warrants issued against those targeted in the sweep were for 189 felony charges and four misdemeanors. Additional violations will be filed as a result of information gained during Wednesday’s roundup, they said.

(Names of those targeted in the drug sweep will appear in Friday’s edition of The Mount Airy News.)