FBI raids Safe Streets site in Baltimore's Belair-Edison neighborhood
BALTIMORE -- The FBI raided the Belair-Edison site of Baltimore's anti-violence program Safe Streets on Thursday.
A spokesperson for the FBI said the agency was "conducting court-authorized activity" at the location, which is in the 3400 block of Belair Road.
WJZ has learned that agents showed up at the homes of two of the program's members, too.
The scope of the investigation was not immediately clear.
Safe Streets was formed in Baltimore's McElderry Park neighborhood in 2007. The gun violence reduction program uses "violence interrupters." The violence interrupters are people who are known in the community tasked with mediating disputes before they turn deadly.
The program is modeled after the CURE Violence program in Chicago.
Johns Hopkins researchers said in a report released this year that they have documented a more than 20% decrease in homicides and non-fatal shootings in neighborhoods where Safe Streets has a presence.
The Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement, more commonly known as MONSE, oversees the program. MONSE was created by Mayor Brandon Scott to oversee Safe Streets along with other violence reduction efforts.
Baltimore City Councilman Eric Costello targeted MONSE's former director, Shantay Jackson, in a social media post following the raid.
"I'd really hope that these programs—who are paid and given support and funding—would be doing what they're supposed to be doing," Belair-Edison resident Erika said.
After the mass shooting at the Brooklyn Homes housing project, some people were critical of Safe Streets and the role it played leading up to the deadly gunfire, according to WJZ's media partner the Baltimore Banner.
Scott said those individuals should instead focus on "a few people who cowardly decided to shoot up a big block party celebration for a community," the Baltimore Banner reported.
Following the FBI raid, he focused on the importance of accountability.
"What I direct the police department to do is to hold any and everybody accountable for wrongdoing no matter who they are," Scott said.
MONSE released a statement saying that it has repeatedly made clear that any staff found guilty of wrongdoing or who do not live up to the values of the program will be held accountable. Their activity should not diminish the work that Safe Streets members do, MONSE said.
"I feel like it makes it difficult to trust those people if that's who it is—but we can't lose hope," Erika said.
Safe Streets has endured a myriad of difficulties, including the murders of several workers over the past two years.
