Boone County Sheriff’s Office seeks grant to fight internet crimes

COLUMBIA, Mo, (KMIZ)

The Boone County Commission voted to allow the Sheriff's Office to apply for a cyber crimes grant when it met Thursday afternoon.

The agenda included a first and second reading of an application for a Missouri Department of Public Safety State Cyber Crime Grant.

The Sheriff's Office is looking for roughly $330,000 to help pay for more personnel, benefits and equipment used when hunting cyber criminals.

The grant would be utilized by the Boone County Sheriff's Office in an effort to reduce internet crimes like child pornography.

"Hopefully once the money is rewarded, the grant is approved at the state level, then we'll go back in and revise a budget," Boone County Presiding Commissioner Kip Kendrick said.

With the commission voting "yes," the next step is a grant review on a state level.

"Once everyone on the county level signs off, there will be a grant review," Kendrick said. "The grants is then officially submitted to the Department of Public Safety. I don't exactly know how long that would take for them to review it."

A DPS spokesperson said that a decision regarding the grant will be made in late June or early July.

The Cyber Crimes Task Force is not only made up of Boone County Sheriff's Office personnel, but also other law enforcement agencies throughout mid-Missouri that need help stopping these types of crimes.

Counties that make up the task force include Cole, Randolph, Audrain, Callaway, Cooper and Howard counties.

According to data provided within the application, throughout the Mid-Missouri area from 2020-22, there were 56 arrests made relating to cyber crimes.

Twenty one of those arrests were made in Boone County and 11 were made in Cole County.

The grant would help with improving safety through investigations, forensics and overall crime prevention.