Lake County, Purdue Northwest cut ribbon on new crime unit
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The Lake County Prosecutor’s office and Purdue University Northwest cut the ribbon this week on a new High Tech Crime Unit. The new state-funded crime lab is housed on the Purdue campus and will be used by law enforcement to investigate and prosecute crimes committed on digital devices.
Typically, financial and violent crimes will be investigated in the lab when potential evidence resides on electronic devices and needs to be retracted. Purdue said the new setup will reduce turnaround time.
“The High Tech Crime Unit at Purdue Northwest is a win-win for the prosecutor’s office and the university,” Purdue Northwest Chancellor Thomas Keon said in a news release. “PNW’s high-quality programs in these disciplines made it the prime choice for the Lake County prosecutor’s office to partner with to meet an important need for digital forensics knowledge and application.”
Both Lake and Porter Counties will use the setup. Two full-time forensics faculty members will staff the crime unit, and students in related programs will have opportunities to get experience within it.
Funding for the initiative came from a 2021 state allotment meant to equip county prosecutors with resources for computer-related crime.
“We are so grateful and excited about this opportunity to partner with Purdue Northwest,” Lake County Prosecutor Bernard Carter said. “This partnership will have a tremendous impact on the criminal justice system as we work in tandem with Purdue Northwest students to extract crucial evidence for prosecution.”