CLEVELAND — The location has been selected for the new Strike Force headquarters, which will house dozens of local and federal law enforcement agencies under one roof. The location will be built on vacant land in the Old Brooklyn neighborhood that is centrally located and easily accessible to area highways.
The 47,000-square-foot facility will soon be built in the Jennings Industrial Park.
Strike Force is a Department of Justice initiative which brings money and resources to Northeast Ohio.
“It’s another tool in our tool box,” said Keith Martin, DEA Special Agent in Charge Detroit Division.
The Cleveland Strike Force is number 16. “There are 15 others in the country. What I think makes us unique is we are the largest and most comprehensive in the country,” said FBI Supervisory Special Agent Todd Dekatch.
The Cleveland Strike Force will be led by the DEA and FBI. The United States Marshal Service and Homeland Security Investigations are among the eight federal agencies housed under one roof.
“We will be going after the command and control of the cartels more efficiently,” explained Martin.
Twenty-eight local agencies will also be moved to the Old Brooklyn location.
But unlike other Strike Forces across the country, the Cleveland Strike Force will focus on violent crime. “Every Strike Force is focused on drug trafficking, but we were able to point out the overlap between drug trafficking and violent crime,” said US Attorney of the Northern District of Ohio Justin Herdman.
While the building is not yet constructed, Strike Force is up and running already, taking part in a handful of investigations, including the indictment of 10 people last week accused of funneling fentanyl-laced pills from Mexico to Northeast Ohio.
City council approved a package of incentives that will allow the developer to build the office building to serve as the headquarters.
Construction on the facility is expected to begin in the next few weeks.
