David Starks and Jason Sole, both formerly incarcerated abolitionists volunteering with the Free Philip Vance team, spoke about their experiences with the now-disbanded Metro Gang Strike Force in Minnesota.
Maintaining his innocence from day one, Philip Vance has been incarcerated since 2004 after being convicted based on testimony by informants who have since recanted, saying they were coerced by corrupt police officers in the disbanded Metro Gang Strike Force (formerly Minnesota Gang Strike Force). One informant was the sister of an investigating officer. After 12 years of ruthless operations, the Gang Strike Force was shut down in 2009 following federal investigations that found police exercising criminal behavior.
Starks shared a story about having his rights violated by members of the Gang Strike Force including Minneapolis Police’s Jeffrey Jindra, an infamously violent officer who was known for sodomizing residents during raids. Jindra’s son, Ty Jindra also served in the Minneapolis Police Department and was federally convicted and sentenced to three years in prison for stealing drugs from suspects. Ty was released in March 2024.
Meanwhile, Vance remains in prison for life on a murder charge in which there is no evidence that ties him to.
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