Skipp Townsend, a gang intervention advocate in Los Angeles, was arrested on November 5 in connection with a murder investigation. The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) reported that Townsend, 62, was taken into custody in South Los Angeles on suspicion of conspiracy to commit murder.
Townsend serves as the executive director of 2nd Call, an organization focused on mediating disputes among gang members and promoting non-violent alternatives. A representative from the Los Angeles County Jail indicated that he was booked at the LAPD Valley Jail with a bail set at $2 million.
Notably, Townsend, who has a history as a former gang member, is considered a prominent voice in Los Angeles’s violence prevention initiatives and has frequently appeared in media alongside local leaders. The LAPD has not disclosed specific details regarding the alleged conspiracy or the roles of the five individuals arrested, which also included four others, two of whom were reportedly detained as accessories after the fact.
The arrests are said to be linked to the fatal shooting of Reginald Foreman, a 51-year-old individual who was working with 2nd Call at the time of his death in August. However, the relationship between the shooting and the current arrests has not been clarified.
