Alaska Department of Public Safety briefs House committee on investigations, technical units and canines

Juneau — The Alaska Department of Public Safety told the House Community and Regional Affairs Committee on Feb. 13 that it has expanded statewide investigative capacity, added specialized teams for child exploitation and missing and murdered Indigenous persons (MMIP) work, and continues to use trained canines to locate digital evidence.

The department’s most statewide investigative resource, the Alaska Bureau of Investigation (ABI), now has investigators placed in many rural areas, with larger concentrations in Anchorage, Fairbanks and the Kenai Peninsula, Commissioner James Cockrell said. “We send them all over the state, including providing support for other law enforcement agencies in the state because that’s what we do,” Cockrell said.

Why it matters: Committee members questioned staffing levels, geographic coverage and investigative capacity for violent crimes, child exploitation and MMIP cases. Cockrell and staff said new positions and federal- and state-level attention have increased investigative support in several regions.

Details: Cockrell said the department secured funding to create a special child-abuse investigative unit in the Bethel area and hired three investigators focused on serious crimes against children; all three positions were filled in October. The department also reported four MMIP investigators are on staff to comply with a statute passed last year that established a minimum investigator allocation for MMIP matters.

Cockrell also highlighted a technical crimes unit that handles child sexual abuse material and sensitive evidence extracted from electronic devices, and he noted the department’s use of canines, including one named Sunny, trained to detect electronic devices used in serious cases.

Committee members complimented the written follow-up materials the department provided and asked for additional data. Representative Collin said the materials were “very helpful,” and other lawmakers asked for citation and activity statistics for wildlife troopers, crime trends, and technical-unit caseloads. Cockrell offered to provide further data and to respond to follow-up questions about regional coverage.

Ending: The committee will review the department’s supplemental data and requested follow-ups; members said they expect deeper dives in budget and subcommittee hearings.