Those who knew Anthony E. Barksdale, a longtime Baltimore Police official who was serving as the city’s deputy mayor for public safety, remembered him Friday as as a strong, methodical leader who worked behind the scenes to improve his city.

“He never claimed credit, but trust and believe, he was a major part of why murders plummeted in Baltimore,” City Council President Zeke Cohen said, calling Mr. Barksdale a “quiet warrior.”

He died Thursday, at the age of 53. A cause of death was not disclosed. Mr. Barksdale had long struggled with heart issues, and his retirement from the police department was preceded by a lengthy period of medical leave.

A former acting police commissioner, the West Baltimore native was credited with driving down city gun violence from both the police department

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