WASHINGTON -
In a telephone call, the former employee asked us to disguise his voice, but there was no hiding how he felt. When asked if he felt sorry for the children at Camp Ernest W. Brown, he responded: "Without a doubt."
This former employee of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Washington has worked at Camp Brown. He said he did not like what he saw.
"Disrespect towards the campers, using foul language, belittling them," he described. "Also, physical abuse, slapping the chest, pushing, kind of like throwing on the ground."
The camp was created as a partnership between the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Washington and the Metropolitan Police Department. In fact, it is named after a former police chief.
Camp Brown is about 80 miles from D.C. Parents drop their kids off at Clubhouse 14 on Benning Road in Northeast D.C. for a five-day stay in St. Mary's County, Md.
It's supposed to be an escape to greener pastures. Our interviewee says it's not what parents expect.
"Yes, I definitely think they would be surprised," he said.
And it was a surprise when parents started getting phone calls last week saying their kids were coming home one day early. The Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Washington gave a letter to parents describing the discovery of "inappropriate 'fight club' type activities..."
"The counselor walking inside of a cabin and pulling a Muhammad Ali hit. One, two, three in the chest," said the former employee.
MPD says it does not hire or supervise counselors at Camp Brown. People we talked with said MPD officers on site behaved "professionally."
A spokesman said, right now, the Boys and Girls Clubs are focused on the "...primary goal of maintaining a safe and quality camp experience ... We will not let isolated shameful actions impact the great work we do."
The employee said he tried to report the problems, but he nobody listened.
Some counselors have been fired. FOX 5 has learned that some of them came from the D.C. Summer Youth Employment program.
No one has been charged with a crime, but the investigation continues.
Camp Brown is closed - at least for now.
