Idaho Falls Police Department officials sat down Monday with the Idaho Falls City Council to discuss increases in gang activity in the city.

Chief Bryce Johnson attended the work session with three officers, including Sgt. Jessica Marley, who heads the department’s gang unit.

The police department estimates there are nearly 600 people in Idaho Falls associated with gangs, with the gangs ranging in size from less than 10 to more than 200. Many of those gangs focus their membership around a specific ethnic group, though some allow other races to increase their numbers. The exception is white supremacist gangs, which number around 60 people in the city.

According to Marley, the gang unit is about more than making arrests and catching criminals. Each officer has an understanding of the social structure that’s built between or within the gangs. Arresting those who commit violent crimes and sell drugs is part of the job, but so is talking to the gangs and diffusing tense situations before they become more violent.

“They resolve conflict, and I’ve seen Officer (Jose) Abreo and Officer (Corey) Sato do that with rival gangs,” Marley said. She added that sometimes the unit also reduces tension between the gangs and law enforcement.

Education plays a key role as the unit educates schools, religious organizations and other groups working with teens to head off recruitment efforts.

Abreo said the gang unit was formed last year after police became more aware of growing gang activity and gang graffiti. Other law enforcement officers informed the Idaho Falls Police Department gangs were moving into the area, drawn by the same economic forces that have spurred growth in the city.

“It wasn’t as big of an issue when I first started serving as mayor,” Idaho Falls Mayor Rebecca Casper said.

There has been an increase in calls about shots fired in neighborhoods and reports of threats. Many of these calls are hard to verify because the scene is cleared of suspects before police arrive.

The gang unit has exclusive access to files detailing gang members. Those files are approved by Marley, and only accessible to members of the gang unit. There’s several criteria needed before the unit labels someone a gang member.

“It’s a big deal when the government is keeping a file on you,” Johnson said, noting the importance of federal law limiting access to the files. “We don’t have a police state, and we’re keeping files on people.”

The gang members don’t exactly hide their allegiance. Police often find members indicating their involvement online, or admitting their involvement to police when asked.

The officers shared pictures from Juan Santos-Quintero’s Facebook page as examples, including photos of him posing with guns and making gang signs. Santos-Quintero was arrested last month after he allegedly robbed several people and later shot a Bingham County Sheriff’s Office deputy.

The rapport officers had built with the victims, themselves gang members, was key to the arrest.

“A lot of these individuals we’re talking to or we’re getting intel from, they have kids, they have family members that are tied up in this lifestyle that they’re desperately trying to help them out,” Abreo said.