The Trump administration will send the FBI on night patrols in the nation’s capital in the wake of President Trump threatening to federalize the District of Columbia, according to multiple reports.
The Washington Post has reported that close to 120 FBI agents are beginning to be deployed for nightlong shifts to assist D.C. law enforcement in halting Washington-based carjackings and violent crime, two sources with knowledge of the situation told the outlet.
A spokesperson for the FBI told The New York Times that there was involvement “in the increased federal law enforcement presence in Washington” by its agents and pointed the outlet to the White House.
The post first reported on the FBI night shifts.
A White House official told NewsNation’s Kellie Meyer that around 450 federal officers would be “in high traffic areas and other known hotspot across Washington, DC.”
“Everyone who lives in our Nation’s capital knows homelessness and crime are plaguing this city,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement obtained by Meyer.
“You can thank President Trump for finally taking action to clean it up. Under President Trump’s leadership, DC will be safe and beautiful again for its residents, lawmakers, and visitors from around the world,” the press secretary added.
Last week, a young man was allegedly beaten via an attempted carjacking in Washington. The man turned out to be Edward Coristine, who gained attention earlier this year due to the combination of his position in tech billionaire Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency and the nickname of “Big Balls.”
On Tuesday, Trump posted a message on social media featuring a photo of a bloodied Coristine as well as his sentiments that crime in the nation’s capital was “totally out of control.” The president also said that “if D.C. doesn’t get its act together, and quickly, we will have no choice but to take Federal control of the City, and run this City how it should be run.”
The Hill has reached out to the FBI for comment.
