(NewsNation) — The U.S. Marshals Service is offering $500 for tips leading to arrests in Washington, D.C. — the latest effort from the Trump administration to ramp up an already growing arrest rate in the nation’s capital.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi posted a flyer for the reward program on social media Wednesday, requesting tips in what it called a “public safety surge” in the nation’s capital.
Following the posted link leads to a website to report fugitives, missing persons, threats against federal judges and more. It also prompts the user for information on potential suspects.
Interior deputizes border agents to National Park sites amid DC takeover
Law enforcement data shows the number of people arrested each day in Washington has increased by about 20% since the government began sending in a surge of federal agents, the Associated Press reported.
According to White House officials, at least 630 people have been arrested in D.C. since the crackdown started, including three known gang members.
DC needed help, seeing ‘lots of positive’ since takeover: US Marshals chief
Gady Serralta, director of the U.S. Marshals Service, told NewsNation’s “CUOMO” on Wednesday that President Donald Trump’s decision to send in the National Guard and seize control of D.C. police has led to tangible results.
“We’ve picked up five murderers. We’ve picked up two sex offenders,” Serralta said. “And that’s going to ramp up now.”
DC mayor responds to DOJ probe into crime rates
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser on Wednesday said she and other city officials plan to fully comply with any federal investigations.
Her comments came as the Justice Department launched an investigation into whether officials at the Metropolitan Police Department falsified crime data, according to two people familiar with the probe.
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City leaders have repeatedly pointed to that data, which puts violent crime at a 30-year low in the nation’s capital, to argue against Trump’s federal takeover.
As he deployed hundreds of National Guard members to the area, Trump continually claimed violent crime was getting worse in D.C. — despite data from the district saying otherwise.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.