OTTUMWA — Local, state and federal agents raided two Ottumwa bars in the early morning hours Friday, along with a number of private residences, in what authorities are calling a major drug investigation.

The raids were a massive undertaking involving 15 agencies and an estimated 200 officers. It was the end of an investigation that took more than a year.

Tactical teams, often called swat teams, broke in the doors of The Plowboy, an after-hours bar downtown on East Main Street, and the Dugout on Church Street. The raids happened almost simultaneously at just after 5 a.m.

Glass littered the front sidewalks at both bars as investigators came and went, bringing in large boxes and removing evidence. Officers armed with assault rifles guarded the entrances.

Inside, authorities catalogued and photographed evidence before removal. A large amount of jewelry and cash was visible laid out on a pool table at the Dugout so officers could easily view and count the items.

Police Chief Jim Clark said authorities also arrested a number of people at “multiple residential places.”

The U.S. Attorney’s office announced the arrests of nine people in connection with the investigation. They are: James Edwards, 39; Sandra Lee Piedlow, 32; Israel Joubert, 38; Jerry Eugene Miller, 24; Mario Vincent Gadberry, 22, Derek Oneal, 45; Rafael DeLazaro, 37; Marlon Rayon Rust, 34. All are listed as Ottumwa residents. William Albert Edwards III, 41, Eldon, was also arrested at a hotel in St. Louis, Mo. Each of the defendants is being held in the Wapello County Jail. They face charges of conspiracy to distribute cocaine.

Clark said the people arrested in the raids were not born in the area.

“They’re currently living in Ottumwa. They’re not originally from Ottumwa,” he said. “They’re originally from the city of Chicago.”

Illinois law enforcement, speaking on condition of anonymity because the agent was not authorized to speak for any department, confirmed that at least three of those arrested have known gang ties. William Edwards, James Edwards and Joubert are members of the Insane Deuces, a gang based on Chicago’s north side in the Hamlin Park area.

William Edwards was previously charged with murder and found not guilty. He was also found not guilty of cocaine possession.

Illinois court records show Joubert has a considerable Illinois criminal record, beginning with a 1993 conviction for carrying and possession of a firearm. The courts sentenced him to probation, but the record shows at least one violation.

Police arrested Joubert again in 2001 for theft after he failed to return a rented dunk tank. He spent two years in prison. And in 2003 he was sentenced to a year in prison for cocaine possession.

Clark would not comment on any gang ties for any of the suspects, nor would he say anything about prior criminal histories. That was part of the investigation, though.

“We’re very aware of [the suspects’] backgrounds,” he said.