Criminal Investigations Division
The Columbus County Criminal Investigations Division (CID) consists of a group of highly trained investigators under the direction of the Division Commander – Captain who is responsible for the overall operation of the division.
Primary Function
The primary function of the CID is to conduct follow-up investigations of crimes committed within Columbus County. After a report is taken by a Columbus County Sheriff’s Office Patrol Deputy, reports are reviewed by the Captain or Lieutenant and assigned to criminal investigators for further investigation.
Criminal Investigators with specialized training are assigned cases to investigate based on their expertise.
Case assignments are generally based on the following categories: Violent Crimes/Homicides, Sexual Assaults, Missing Persons, Financial Crimes, Property Crimes and Juvenile Offenders.
Deputies selected for assignment to the CID are chosen based on the knowledge, skills and abilities they exhibited as patrol deputies and for their desire to do the specific job for which they have applied. An intensive promotional board comprised of Columbus County Sheriff’s Office Command Staff Members evaluate not only the general knowledge of the perspective candidate, but also their critical thinking skills. Members of the CID receive specialized training to help them develop into capable interviewers and investigators to better assist them with investigating all types of criminal cases.
Core Value
Every case is important to the CID. The core value of the CID is to take care of the victims and protect the innocent. When the Investigators are assigned cases, they make contact with the victims and introduce themselves. It is vital to make sure the community knows an Investigator cares about each of their cases. Investigators conduct follow-up interviews and discuss the preliminary aspects of each case. Investigators then begin to examine and explore every aspect of the assigned case and follow any leads that are present. These leads are often in the form of witness information, physical evidence (fingerprints, DNA, etc.), or apparent methods of operation (MO) based on their knowledge, training and experience.
The Columbus County Sheriff’s Office CID also works with many other agencies to investigate cases and to share information across the State of North Carolina and the United States. The CID works with State and Federal Law Enforcement agencies on many high-profile cases and cases involving multiple jurisdictions. It is extremely important for Criminal Investigators to have great attention to detail in working these cases and all cases.
Through the diligent efforts of the personnel assigned to this Division we have attacked issues the members of our community have shared with us as being detrimental to the quality of life in Columbus County. While it is difficult to truly reflect in words the commitment that our criminal investigators put into their assignments, their accomplishments tend to speak for themselves.
The CID strives daily to help the citizens of Columbus County in any way possible and to collectively do what they can to make the communities in which we live a much better place.
Detective Division
The Detective Division consists of a group of highly trained investigators. The Columbus County Sheriff’s Office Detective Division is under the direction of the Division Commander – Captain who is responsible for the overall operation of the division.
The primary function of the Detective Division is to conduct follow-up investigations of crimes. Cases are reviewed by the Detective Captain or Lieutenant and assigned to investigators. Detectives with specialized training are assigned cases to investigate based on their expertise.
Case assignments are generally based on the following categories: Violent Crimes/Homicides, Sexual Assault, Missing Persons, Financial Crimes, Property Crimes and Juvenile Offenders.
Specialized Training
Deputies selected for assignment to the Detective Division are chosen for their knowledge, skills and abilities they exhibited as patrol deputies and for their desire to do the specific job for which they have applied. Members of the Detective Division receive specialized training to help them develop into capable interviewers and investigators.
Specialized training allows the Detective Division to conduct Crime Scene Investigations and to process some types of evidence within the Sheriff’s Office laboratory. One Detective has received training as a fingerprint examiner utilizing a modern database that connects to other agencies around the country. Another Detective has been trained to conduct polygraph examinations to assist in investigations. The Detective Division assists neighboring law enforcement agencies by providing these specialized services on request.
Every case is important to the Detectives investigating the crimes. Their first priority is to take care of the victims and protect the innocent. This is the core value of the Detective Division of the Columbus County Sheriff’s Office.
Procedure
When the Detectives are assigned cases, they make contact with the victims and introduce themselves. The Detectives conduct follow-up interviews and discuss the preliminary aspects of the cases. The Detectives then begin to examine and explore every aspect of their cases and follow any leads that are present. These leads are often in the form of witness information, physical evidence (fingerprints, DNA, etc.), apparent methods of operation (MO), or a strong intuitive feeling of the Detective that is based on their knowledge, training and experience.
The Detectives also work with many other agencies to investigate cases and to share information. The Detective Division works with State and Federal Law Enforcement agencies on many high profile cases and cases involving multiple jurisdictions.
Through the diligent efforts of the personnel assigned to this Division we have attacked issues the members of our community have shared with us as being detrimental to the quality of life in Columbus County.
While it is difficult to truly reflect in words the commitment that our detectives put into their assignments, their accomplishments tend to speak for themselves.