Operation LeGend brings federal resources to assist with violent crime investigations
Operation LeGend will bring many federal law enforcement resources to help KCPD investigate violent crimes and bring them to prosecution.
U.S. Attorney General William Barr announced Operation LeGend on July 8. Named after 4-year-old LeGend Taliferro, who was murdered June 29 while he slept in an apartment near 63rd and Paseo, Operation LeGend is a “sustained, systematic and coordinated law enforcement initiative across all federal law enforcement agencies working in conjunction with state and local law enforcement officials to fight the sudden surge of violent crime, beginning in Kansas City, MO.”
Federal agents soon will be coming to Kansas City from the FBI, U.S. Marshal Service, DEA and ATF to assist Kansas City Police detectives in investigating violent crimes. KCPD already has long-standing relationships with these agencies and works in conjunction with them on a regular basis. Those strong relationships, along with the 40% increase in homicides over last year, led to Kansas City being the first city chosen for Operation LeGend.
The federal agents will NOT patrol the streets of Kansas City or serve as any kind of occupying force. The agents will not be uniformed. Rather, they will work with KCPD detectives to identify, arrest and prosecute violent offenders, particularly repeat violent offenders. While not all details have been decided, the federal agents will be assigned to work with investigative elements, not patrol.
The Kansas City Missouri Police Department welcomes any assistance that will reduce violent crime and improve public safety in our city.