Armed robbery sparks debate over encrypted police radios

A police scanner used by suspects in the armed robbery of a market is something the Salinas Police Department is concerned about. This is just weeks after police announced plans to roll out a new radio system to keep criminals from having access to police communication. Though La Viña Market is equipped with several surveillance cameras, they weren’t enough to keep it safe from the suspects who robbed the small grocery store Monday night. Though employees are hard at work, they’re unsettled by what took place. “It worries me because we come here to work and our families back home are expecting us to come back” says La Viña employee Adriana Pacheco. According to the Salinas Police Department, witnesses say they heard a police scanner loud and clear from the suspects car, raising the question. Did it help them escape? “We’ve come across criminals for many years now that have scanners with them” says Detective Byron Gansen with the Salinas Police Department. “I know there’s apps on smartphones now to where we wouldn’t even be able to tell if they have scanners now.” Police believe the scanner may have helped the suspects get away, they hope that encrypting some frequencies they use to communicate will take away any advantage a scanner can give criminals. “In this case last night, they wouldn’t have that jump on us” says Detective Gansen. “We would hopefully be able to sneak up and catch more criminals in the act.” But before that can happen, there’s still a whole lot of work to be done before a new system rolls out. “We take into consideration the transparency issue but also we need to take into consideration the officers safety issue as well as the public safety issue and catching criminals.” Says Gansen