RV and mustang added to a sherriff departments fleet

[hotwheels]

McMinn County Sheriff Steve Frisbie has added both size and speed to his department's fleet.

A tour bus seized by the 10th Judicial District Drug Task Force last year was donated to the Sheriff's Department and has been converted into a mobile command center. A sleek Ford Mustang seized after a drunk driving case was also donned with Sheriff's Department decals and will be seen on local roads.

Both are intended to increase the Sheriff's Departments presence in the community while giving new tools to deputies, Frisbie said.

The sheriff is using drug fund money collected from seizures to refurbish the vehicles.

"It didn't cost taxpayers anything," Frisbie said. "Something like that would really cost the department," the sheriff added as he surveyed the 35-foot bus. "I've seen departments to the north and south of us have these. A department our size, we couldn't have afforded it."

The 1986 model bus was stopped in February 2007 on the interstate in south Cleveland. Drug agents reported finding more than $1.5 million cash stuffed in speakers wrapped in duct tape in the back of the tour bus.

The sole occupant of the bus claimed to be driving to Indiana for a mariachi band, according to Drug Task Force Director Mike Hall.

Investigators learned the bus was actually being used by Mexican drug runners and the case was turned over to federal agents, Hall said. Mattresses in the undercarriage of the bus led investigators to believe it may have been used to transport illegal aliens, too. The bus was awarded to the Drug Task Force after no one claimed ownership of it or the bundles of cash. The Drug Task Force kept the money to run its regional interdiction team and turned over the bus to the McMinn County Sheriff's Department.

"It's going to be a big benefit to the county and it will help maintain a good relationship between our agency and the McMinn County Sheriff's Department," Hall said. "We have a great working relationship with Sheriff Frisbie and I am ecstatic we are able to make this donation."

Hall is anxious to see the bus this week. When he donated the bus, it was painted pink and purple and was adorned in the back with a picture of a badger. Now the bus is polished black with the gold logos of the McMinn County Sheriff's Department on it. Frisbie said it cost about $5,000 to repaint the bus.

The tour bus will be used during emergencies and during public events. The sheriff said the near-100 car pile-up on Interstate 75 in 1990 is a perfect example of how a mobile command post can be used.

"God forbid something like that ever happens again, but if it does you can roll in with this and set up and work out of it," Frisbie said.

Officers who drive the bus will be required to have a commercial driver's licenses. Frisbie is among those at the Sheriff's Department licensed to drive it.

Six sleeping bunks and a large cargo area are all the features of the bus's interior. Frisbie said he plans, through drug fund money, to add computers, radios and cabinets to create an office on wheels. The bus will not be used as a transport vehicle, the sheriff said.

The new Ford Mustang will not be used to carry prisoners, either, but it may be used for patrol. Frisbie said he will keep the Mustang off duty most of the time because it has a five-speed manual transmission. It cost about $2,000 to repair the Mustang because it had front-end damage after being wrecked, Frisbie said. The 2000 model muscle car will mostly be used as a public relations tool at schools, in parades and at car shows.

"The kids pitch a fit wanting their picture with it," Frisbie said. "As officers we want positive interaction like that with the kids and for them to not be afraid to talk to us and to approach us. It's a way to be more friendly with the public."

[trueblue02]

Is that True Blue?

[hotwheels]

I believe it is.

[already7]

Hey they used to have like 89 Vette, and a 79 Vette here in North Little Rock that patrolled the streets.
The newer one had green neons under it and a booming stereo system, that one could sneak up on you pretty easy because it had the super low profile lights on it.

Good thing that he was my Mom's neighbor! He cut me quite a bit of slack for some silly things that might have gotten me a ticket from other officers.