Philadelphia has suspended a $392,000 antiviolence grant to a youth boxing program founded by a Philly police captain who was removed from his post in October after an Inquirer investigation exposed his chronic absenteeism.
The city has suspended a $392,000 antiviolence grant to a youth boxing program founded by a Philadelphia police captain who was removed from his post in October afterThe grant for the Guns Down Gloves Up program, awarded in December 2021 to Epiphany Fellowship Church and Villanova University, is the subject of at least two investigations, a city spokesperson confirmed.
Philadelphia police spokesperson Sgt. Eric Gripp said the department had only recently been alerted to the payments to the officers. He could not say whether any had been paid grant money for work completed while they were on duty. Other financial records for Guns Down Gloves Up, obtained by The Inquirer through open-records laws, reveal a fragmented paper trail of what public finance experts say are questionable expenditures and substandard documentation.
In September 2021, with Akil’s support, Epiphany Fellowship Church and Villanova University sought $798,000 in grant funding to expand the boxing program and evaluate its impact.“Our officers are committed to this work,” Akil wrote. As of last year, Akil described himself as substantially in charge of the program. Records show him and his officers managing funds to purchase food and supplies. Reporters’ emails and visits to Epiphany last fall to talk to the person in charge of the program were also directed back to the 22nd District.
Before funding was suspended, Guns Down Gloves Up had billed the city for more than $200,000. About half of that went to program-related activities: paying coaches, buying food and boxing gear, and paying incentives. Rice, in a November interview, said that 50 youths were then enrolled in the research, but just 16 had completed the 12-week study period.Epiphany, in its grant application, reported an annual budget of $1.5 million fueled largely by online donations. But aspects of the church’s application were unusual.
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