The Make D.C. Safe and Beautiful Task Force marks its first anniversary Tuesday after logging more than 16,000 arrests since its launch.
The task force began Aug. 11, 2025, after President Trump declared a crime emergency in Washington and deployed National Guard troops to the district, combining federal, state and local law enforcement.
“Under President Trump’s leadership, the Department of Justice and our law enforcement partners have delivered extraordinary results in our nation’s capital,” said Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche. “More than 16,000 arrests, thousands of illegal drugs and firearms taken off the streets, and dangerous violent offenders brought to justice mean safer neighborhoods and lives protected.”
According to a White House official, the operation has produced 35 homicide-suspect arrests, more than 100 known gang member arrests, over 3,200 narcotics arrests, nearly 2,000 illegal guns seized and 25 missing children located and returned home.
“President Trump has transformed our nation’s capital from a crime-ridden city into a safe and beautiful haven for residents and visitors alike,” said White House spokesperson Lauren Bis.
U.S. Marshals Service Director Gadyaces Serralta credited the interagency approach. “When law enforcement works together, the impact is exponential,” he said. “The D.C. Safe and Beautiful Task Force is proof that the whole-of-government approach works.”
The crackdown followed the June 2025 killing of 21-year-old congressional intern Eric Tarpinian and a string of violent crimes, including the beating of a former DOGE staffer and the shooting death of a 14-year-old boy in a case tied to MS-13 gang members.
