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Grass Valley police outline regional digital‑forensics work, training and new equipment
Summary
Detective Chris Roberts told the City Council the department’s regional digital‑forensics unit handled 103 cases since January 2024 and processed about 42,000 gigabytes of data; he described recent Secret Service training and about $50,000 of grant-funded equipment received through the program.
The Grass Valley Police Department gave the City Council an update on local digital‑forensics capacity on April 22, describing a regional task force, recent federal training and new equipment the department obtained through a Secret Service–funded program.
Alex Gamelgaard, chief of police, introduced Detective Chris Roberts as the department’s high‑tech and cyber‑crimes investigator. Roberts said the region has become heavily dependent on digital evidence and that his unit now serves as a regional resource alongside the Nevada County District Attorney’s Office, Truckee Police Department and Nevada City Police Department.
Roberts provided workload statistics dating back to January 2024: “Since that time, we’ve had 103 cases where we’ve done digital forensics work. On those cases, we’ve processed 261 digital evidence items and processed about 42,000 gigabytes worth of data,” he said, describing phones, tablets and vehicle systems as common sources of material.
Roberts said he completed a three‑week mobile‑device examination course at the Secret Service’s National Computer Forensics Institute in Hoover, Alabama, and that the training came with hardware, two years of software licensing and certifications. “We came home with approximately $50,000 worth of equipment that was all grant funded through the Secret Service,” he said.
He also described local training hosted by a vendor, MSAB, and said the regional task force has assisted agencies including Sierra County, El Dorado County, CHP and Sacramento County. Roberts noted investigations supported by digital evidence ranged from drug offenses and organized retail theft to child‑exploitation cases.
Council members praised the work and asked practical questions from the floor. In response to a question about finding lost cell phones, Roberts said the public should turn found phones in to local police, and noted dispatchers can sometimes identify the number associated with a found device.
No policy or budget requests for the council were made during the presentation; the briefing was framed as an informational update on capacity, training and regional cooperation.
