How good are those well financed violence protection programs?
“Leonard Smith, one of 42 suspects arrested in “Operation No Fly Zone,” was part of Advance Peace, a non-profit organization that works to reduce gun violence and promote “community healing,” according to court documents from Fresno County.
The arrest happened as part of the “No Fly Zone” operation by Fresno Police where over 40 people were arrested including Leonard Smith, 43.
The Fresno County District Attorney’s Office confirmed that Smith has a criminal history including an arrest back in 1997 for attempted murder. Documents show that Smith was convicted in 1998 and was sentenced to prison. Sources said Smith spent over 20 years behind bars, was released, and was on parole when he was arrested for the new charges in 2022.
Who are they fooling? These programs are to create jobs for failed bureaucrats and gangsters using them as cover for their criminal activity. It is time to get serious about crime—not use the fighting of it as another scam.
Man arrested in operation was part of violence prevention program, court documents say
by: Mederios Babb, Your central valley, 4/20/22
FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) — Leonard Smith, one of 42 suspects arrested in “Operation No Fly Zone,” was part of Advance Peace, a non-profit organization that works to reduce gun violence and promote “community healing,” according to court documents from Fresno County.
The arrest happened as part of the “No Fly Zone” operation by Fresno Police where over 40 people were arrested including Leonard Smith, 43.
The Fresno County District Attorney’s Office confirmed that Smith has a criminal history including an arrest back in 1997 for attempted murder. Documents show that Smith was convicted in 1998 and was sentenced to prison. Sources said Smith spent over 20 years behind bars, was released, and was on parole when he was arrested for the new charges in 2022.
Those documents say that Smith “who did unlawfully, and with malice aforethought conspire to murder rival gang members.”
According to the criminal complaints, on February 14 Matthew Townsend was shot and injured on the 300 block of E. Jensen.
That same day, documents allege that gang member Rafer Alston Jr. texted Smith about the shooting and that Smith told Alston Jr. to delete the text messages.
On February 26, documents allege that Alston Jr. called Smith to tell him he was going to murder an informant.
On March 9, documents said 28-year-old Javonte Askew was killed after he was shot 18 times on the 2600 block of East Holland.
The criminal complaint claims that on March 11, after Smith learned Alston Jr. was a suspect, Smith told Alston Jr. to leave town and that Smith would keep law enforcement away.
The complaint states that the next day Smith asked Alston Jr. for a gun so he could attack a person that was giving him problems. On the 20th, documents claim Smith told Alston of Smith’s plan to kill a rival gang member.
Advance Peace is a non-profit organization that will pay for education or life-skills training each month to incentivize staying out of trouble.
In a statement, officials from Advance Peace Fresno confirmed that Smith is an employee of the program.
“By the nature of the program, our Neighborhood Change Agents work with gang members to reduce cyclical and retaliatory gun violence,” said Aaron Foster, Program Manager for Advance Peace Fresno. “We are looking forward to a positive outcome.”
Smith pleaded not guilty in court during his arraignment on Tuesday.
