ASSOCIATE Magazine FBINAA Q1-2024

FBINAA.ORG | Q1 2024

In a more recent case in Texas, two young teens sadly lost their lives to the opioid epidemic. Text messages on their phones led investigators straight to the dealer. In Connecticut, a 22-year old woman died from heroin laced with fentanyl. The person who called 911 claimed it was an “acquaintance,” yet the data extract ed from the phone showed the two met in rehab, took drugs to gether on more than one occasion and the "acquaintance” – now suspect – provided the drugs that killed the victim. In both cases, the digital evidence proved pivotal in helping law enforcement hold those responsible accountable – bringing a small semblance of closure and justice to the families the victims leave behind. GETTING RELIABLE ANSWERS QUICKLY We have long known about the shortcomings of eyewit ness accounts. Data holds no prejudice nor bias, nor a faulty or incomplete memory. It can efficiently and thoroughly address the fundamental questions that investigators need to know: Who? What? Where? When? And why? With the right digital intelligence solutions and training, the digital witness can rapidly help provide those answers to investigators. Yet manually collecting this data at an overdose scene is not always easy. Often, a person is connected to many devices, such as phones, watches and even appliances. This creates a mountain of data, which can be daunting and without proper tools and training, it can be difficult for investigative teams to manage. Additionally, as devices become more sophisticated, so do the challenges of accessing encrypted or secured data. Beyond technology and tools, agency resources are typi cally scarce. The time needed to sort through and analyze all the digital evidence is overwhelming, if not impossible, particularly in complex cases. Many small agencies are struggling with limited resources and overwhelmed with case backlogs and other duties. PRIORITIZING DIGITAL INTELLIGENCE SOLUTIONS As a profession, we must overcome these hurdles to deliver justice to those who lose their lives to drug addiction. We must

dismantle the criminal drug trafficking networks that are respon sible for the distribution of narcotics and the deaths that result. The devices left behind by victims serve as invaluable digital wit nesses, and a trail leading to the suppliers. With all of that said, we must balance the investigative needs and the privacy rights of individuals. Access to the data must be handled both legally and ethically. We must engage with legal experts, civil liberties advocates and policymakers to develop guidelines that ensure technology is used in a way that upholds our values and respects the rights of individuals. The opioid epidemic has been a plague on our nation for more than a decade and the lasting damage fentanyl wreaks is heartbreaking. Collecting and analyzing the digital footprint that exists throughout the supply chain – from the source to the inevi table overdose – is urgently needed to begin to put a dent in this problem. The digital witness—both today and in the future—will transform how law enforcement investigates crimes. From my early days as an officer, to my tenure as chief of police and now as a digital intelligence professional, I have come to understand and appreciate the tremendous value of utilizing devices as the stron gest possible witnesses. Our agencies must embrace the power of the digital witness to combat the opioid epidemic; it represents our greatest hope.

About the Author: Desmond Racicot , Sr Director of Business Development at Cellebrite, a retired chief from upstate New York and graduate of FBI National Academy Session 199, now works at Cellebrite to help agencies adopt new technology to make their investigations more efficient and effective. He has witnessed many of the technological challenges that law enforcement faces and endeavors to connect them with solutions to help advance justice.

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