Banjo Quietly Rebranded Itself Following Report on Former CEO’s KKK Past

After OneZero’s investigation, Banjo became safeXai

Illustration by Julia Moburg for OneZero. Image source: Siam Pukkato/Getty Images

Last April, OneZero revealed the CEO of digital surveillance firm Banjo, Inc. was once tied to the KKK and involved in the drive-by shooting of a synagogue. In the aftermath, Banjo’s local and state contracts dried up, and CEO and founder Damien Patton was forced to resign.

But new evidence suggests that in the months following OneZero’s report, Banjo quietly rebranded as safeXai. Patton is still a minority shareholder in the company and an inventor of each of its patents.

Within days of OneZero’s report in April 2020, Utah’s department of public safety suspended a $20.7 million contract with Banjo, and Banjo, in turn, suspended all of its operations in Utah, pending a review by the state auditor. Patton resigned and Justin R. Lindsey, a former chief technology officer with the FBI, took over as CEO.

CEO of Surveillance Firm Banjo Once Helped KKK Leader Shoot Up a Synagogue

Then, on February 1, an independent commission convened by the auditor released recommendations for…