RISS recently began offering CARFAX^® as an available resource.  The resource is not available on the RISS Secure Cloud (RISSNET); however, RISS staff can access CARFAX on behalf of the member agency and provide appropriate information to the requesting agency or officer.

CARFAX offers powerful investigative tools to law enforcement personnel at no cost.  Thousands of law enforcement agencies rely on CARFAX to solve crimes faster and keep their communities safe.  The Vehicle History Database contains more than 17 billion records from more than 100,000 sources.  Over 5 million new records are added daily and can provide a potential lead in an agency’s case.  To view information regarding the free tools offered by CARFAX, click here.

CARFAX has provided this service to the RISS Centers without cost, and RISS is pleased to announce this new partnership.  For additional information regarding CARFAX or to read shared success stories, visit the website at https://www.carfaxforpolice.com.

You are an investigator and have received a call that an elderly couple in your city were just found brutally murdered in their home.  There are a few suspects, many questions from family and friends, and a lot of case information to sift through.  As an investigator assigned to solve a violent crime, your first thought is to bring the suspects in this case to justice.  So where do you turn for services and resources to assist you with solving this crime?

In order to expand on what you have learned about the primary suspects in your investigation, RISS intelligence research staff can develop target packages based on various data sources, which can  help identify suspects, victims, and witnesses and provide other key information to aid investigative efforts.

Once you have a criminal predicate for any entity you believe is connected to the case, RISS intelligence research staff can query and submit information in the RISS Criminal Intelligence Database (RISSIntel) to determine whether other law enforcement agencies are investigating that same subject, address, phone, etc.  The RISSIntel user interface provides for a real-time, online federated search of more than 50 RISS and partner intelligence databases.

Throughout the course of the investigation, whether conducting surveillance or serving arrest warrants, RISS strongly encourages you to use an officer safety deconfliction system.  RISS’s system, known as RISSafe, can help you detect potential conflicts between other agencies and officers who may be investigating your same subject at the same time or planning an operation in the same vicinity at the same time.  Especially with undercover operations and the potential for blue-on-blue incidents, securely obtaining information on conflicting operations is essential.

The RISS Officer Safety Website can provide you with timely officer safety information and a secure infrastructure to exchange and share officer safety-related information with other agencies.

RISS analytical staff can assist you throughout your violent crime investigation, including preparing for prosecution.  MOCIC analytical staff recently assisted the Chicago, Illinois, Police Department with a homicide and arson investigation.

The Chicago, Illinois, Police Department contacted the MOCIC analytical staff for assistance in a homicide and arson investigation.  The suspects, who were posing as city workers, had entered a home, killed a victim, and subsequently burned the house down.  The MOCIC staff mapped the records of a number of related cell phones, assisting the authorities in determining the locations of those involved in the criminal activity and allowing them to successfully present the case for charging and prosecution.

 Some other useful analytical product techniques for investigations may include:

• Communication analysis to show voice calls or text messages between multiple suspects
• Crime-scene diagrams
• An event flow or timeline of key events pertaining to the violent crime
• Financial analysis graphs and charts
• A link analysis to all of the suspects and their roles in an organization

Many of the RISS Centers offer a variety of specialized equipment available free-of-charge to member agencies.  Surveillance equipment and specialized cameras, recorders, and other devices are available that can assist you with operations during your investigation.

If there are phone numbers involved in the investigation, you can query the RISS Master Telephone Index (MTI) to check against calls in other cases.  This database contains more than 26 million records from across the country.  RISS also developed and offers the RISS Property and Recovery Tracking System (RISSProp), which contains more than 15 million records and has assisted in providing leads or solving violent crime investigations with a nexus to property crime.

RISS cosponsors training classes, including those focusing on violent crimes.  Training examples include the Basic Homicide Investigators Course and Cold Case Investigations.  RISS also develops law enforcement-sensitive briefings and publications.  In addition, some RISS Centers provide digital forensics and audio/video enhancement services, which can play a critical role in identifying, apprehending, and prosecuting violent crime suspects as indicated in the shared success story below.

The Delaware State’s Attorney’s Office submitted audio and video evidence involving a homicide to MAGLOCLEN for enhancement.  The enhanced audio and video were presented as evidence at the murder trial for the suspect and assisted prosecutors in convincing the suspect to plead guilty.  The suspect was found guilty of second-degree murder and is awaiting sentencing.

RISS offers other important information sharing and intelligence resources via the RISS Secure Cloud (RISSNET), such as the RISSGang Program (RISSGang) Website, which includes photos, hand signs, and other information, and the RISSLeads Investigative Website, which provides the opportunity for investigators to securely discuss and share information on various topics, including violent crime.

RISS offers numerous resources and services that can be critical in assisting with solving violent crimes and removing criminals from our streets.  An investigator with the 3rd Judicial District Attorney General’s Office–Tennessee recently stated, “Without the assistance and perseverance of ROCIC case support, we would not have been successful in capturing, investigating, and successfully prosecuting the parties involved.  Thank you, ROCIC, for six convictions of murder in the first degree.”

To learn more about how RISS can assist you with your investigations, visit www.riss.net.  To view violent crime-related and other shared successes submitted by agencies and officers, visit www.riss.net/Impact.

RISSafe Reaches Milestone of 1.5 Million Operations Entered

The RISS Officer Safety Event Deconfliction System (RISSafe) was developed by RISS to help agencies nationwide safeguard their officers and citizens.  Thousands of men and women working undercover operations, engaging in high-risk situations, and working other investigative events rely on RISSafe to help ensure their safety and the safety of citizens.  In some instances, agencies or officers may unintentionally be working in close proximity to another’s investigations, causing investigative efforts to be disrupted or, worse, officers or citizens to be hurt or killed.  RISSafe identifies these operations and alerts both officers of the close proximity they are operating in, thus avoiding imminent danger.

RISSafe is accessible and monitored by RISSafe Watch Center personnel on a 24/7/365 basis and is available to all law enforcement agencies.  Currently, 29 RISSafe Watch Centers are operational, 23 of which are operated by organizations other than RISS.

RISSafe reached a milestone on April 29, 2017, when the WSIN RISSafe Watch Center entered the 1.5–millionth operation into the system on behalf of the West Sacramento, California, Police Department.  The event was submitted for a surveillance/search for a homicide investigation.

On behalf of the RISS Directors, policy board members, and staff, we congratulate the West Sacramento Police Department for helping RISS make history and would like to thank your department for the trust it has shown in the RISSafe system.  To learn more about RISSafe, visit www.riss.net.

MAGLOCLEN surveillance equipment was utilized by the New Jersey State Police, with assistance from the Manchester, New Jersey, Police Department and the Ocean County, New Jersey, Prosecutor’s Office, in a drug investigation.  The equipment was used to maintain surveillance on a suspect and the suspect’s residence, which was believed to be a heroin-packaging location.  Authorities arrested the suspect during a car stop.  When a search warrant was executed on his residence, 352 ounces (10 kilos) of heroin, valued at $1,000,000, was seized.  The suspect was charged with possession with the intent to deliver and possession of heroin.

Specialized Equipment Assists With 12 Arrests in Human Trafficking and Prostitution Investigation

 The Grand Chute, Wisconsin, Police Department (GCPD) borrowed MOCIC specialized equipment to use in an investigation involving human trafficking and prostitution.  Equipment owned by the GCPD was malfunctioning, and the GCPD needed to borrow similar equipment so its investigation could move forward.  As a result of the investigation, 12 individuals were arrested.

“Operation Granite Hammer” Investigation Results in Suspects’ Arrest

The Canaan, New Hampshire, Police Department, working in conjunction with the Lebanon, New Hampshire, Police Department and the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Drug Task Force, contacted NESPIN to request emergency assistance with tracking and mapping real-time cell phone pings for a narcotics investigation.  The NESPIN analytical staff tracked and mapped the location of the suspects for approximately six hours, and the suspects were subsequently arrested after a traffic stop in Lebanon.  A search of the vehicle produced approximately 275 bags of heroin, crack cocaine, and other drug paraphernalia.  The suspects were charged with possession of heroin with the intent to distribute and possession of cocaine with the intent to distribute.  The investigation was part of New Hampshire’s statewide “Operation Granite Hammer,” which aims to reduce opioid drugs coming into New Hampshire.

$2.5 Million of Marijuana Seized During Execution of Search Warrant

The Maricopa County, Arizona, Sheriff’s Office requested assistance from the RMIN RISSafe Watch Center during an investigation of a possible home invasion and suspected marijuana stash house.  A search warrant was served at the residence, and deputies seized 4,825 pounds of marijuana, valued at $2.5 million.

Intelligence Research Information Assists in 35-Year Sentence in Murder Investigation

The Lexington County, South Carolina, Sheriff’s Department investigated a murder involving a man who was shot and killed while attempting to mediate a dispute.  The suspect fired ten shots into a crowded parking lot, striking the victim in the torso and killing him. Following the shooting, the suspect attempted to conceal facts and cover up his involvement in the crime by altering his appearance, changing his phone number, convincing his girlfriend to lie about his location at the time of the crime, and fleeing to New Jersey.  The suspect was arrested in New Jersey and extradited to South Carolina.  During the investigation and while preparing the case for trial, the 11th Circuit Solicitor’s Office contacted the ROCIC intelligence research staff numerous times for assistance.  The ROCIC staff provided information on 37 direct inquiries involving witnesses and associates of the suspect and information on 60 phone numbers.  A trial was conducted and the suspect was found guilty of murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime.  The judge sentenced the defendant to 35 years in prison.

Use of Microwave Hotel Drop Kit Leads to 14 Arrests in Human Trafficking Case

The Placer County, California, Special Investigations Unit borrowed a microwave hotel drop kit from the WSIN equipment staff to use in a human trafficking case, called “Operation Reclaim and Rebuild.”  The case resulted in 14 arrests, and officers seized 5.8 pounds of liquid codeine, valued at $13,000; 1 gram of methamphetamine; one slimline, subcompact handgun; and $4,208 in U.S. currency.

For additional shared Success Stories, visit www.riss.net/Impact.