Criminal Investigations Division

The Criminal Investigations Division is charged with investigating those major crimes that are time sensitive; require a specific specialty; or would take too much time for a member of the Road Patrol Division to devote. They are typically felony investigations; however, those misdemeanor investigations which are time consuming may also be assigned. The Sheriff and/or Chief Deputy may also assign a specific investigation to the Unit. Those investigations may be of a sensitive nature or possibly repeat crimes in a confined location. The section also handles inner departmental personnel investigations, such as back ground investigations of prospective employees and internal investigations.

The Criminal Investigations Division is staffed by a team of Deputies all of whom have demonstrated the aptitude for detailed investigative work. Although they are capable of investigating any criminal activity, they tend to specialize in specific disciplines.

The Division is comprised of two components: Criminal Investigations and Narcotics/Vice Investigations.

• Criminal Investigations
  Investigators assigned to Criminal Investigations are highly trained in a multitude of areas such as crime scene investigations, sex offenses, assaults, homicides, crimes against children, crimes against the elderly, auto theft, financial crimes, white collar crimes, evidence collection, insurance fraud, accident investigations and computer crimes. In addition, the Criminal Investigation Division utilizes Certified Examiners in a Computer Voice Stress Analyzer (C.V.S.A.), a tool used in lie detection.
• Narcotics/Vice Investigations
  Investigators assigned to Narcotics/Vice Investigations are responsible for investigating crimes related to illegal drug trafficking, gambling, prostitution and alcohol-related crimes. Investigators in this unit also investigate crimes that involve the illegal use, sale or purchase of prescription drugs. Although prescription drug use is lawful and necessary in many cases, the intentional non-medical use or abuse of prescription drugs in the United States is on the rise and has begun to receive more attention from various disciplines including law enforcement.

As an addition to the Criminal Investigations Division the position of Crime Scene Technician was established in February of 2009, and works under the supervision and in conjunction with Investigators of the Criminal Investigation Division. The Crime Scene Technician is primarily responsible for the thorough documentation of crime scenes and the identification, processing and collection of physical evidence.

Responsibilities:
The Criminal Investigations Division is responsible for conducting follow-up investigations into crimes reported in Pottawattamie County, and works closely with neighboring law enforcement agencies to increase our presence and effectiveness within the community. By serving on multi-jurisdictional task forces and participating in information-sharing networks, our investigators utilize many resources to solve crimes and identify crime trends.

Investigators are on-call 24 hours a day.