As hundreds of tips pour in, federal agents have joined the search for two brothers abducted from a Catonsville home, making the hunt for the teens one of the largest in recent Baltimore County history.
“This is a daring violent crime that we are intent on solving,” said Baltimore County Police Chief James Johnson. “This is one of the most extensive cooperative joint investigations in recent history.”
Johnson said police are focused on finding Sterling Blackwell, 15, and Stephon Blackwell, 16, who were abducted Tuesday in the 600 block of Plymouth Road by six armed, masked men.
He said officers, who have received “hundreds of leads and tips,” are looking into whether the abduction had anything to do with Baltimore City?s bustling drug trade.
“We are investigating the possibility that this particular kidnapping has a drug connection,” he said. “I don?t know what the particular motivation is for his offense.”
Officers from several federal law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, have joined in the hunt, Johnson said. FBI spokesman Rich Wolf confirmed his agency is involved.
The two brothers each has been arrested five times on charges including drug distribution, according to juvenile records. None of the dispositions of those juvenile arrests could be determined. An older brother, Steven, also has had run-ins with the law, court documents show.
Meanwhile, neighbors said a man pulled up to the home in a flashy car Wednesday night, knocked on the door and then left.
Westgate resident Flo Schwarzkopf said she?s hoping to start a Citizens on Patrol group.
“It definitely wasn?t a random thing,” she said of the kidnapping. “These people knew each other in some fashion.”
Police have recovered a 2004 BMW 645 convertible with tinted windows they say was used in the kidnapping but continue to look for a dark Chevrolet Suburban with blacked-out windows, Johnson said.
“We?ve devoted significant resources to this investigation,” Johnson said. “We will not allow the safety of our citizens and the our communities to be compromised.”
