Federal immigration agents are getting four robot dogs designed to inspect dangerous areas before officers enter.
Under a $1.3 million deal, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will purchase the robots from Connecticut-based Radeco, equipped with a robotic arm, thermal camera, and sensors to detect explosives, according to the Boston Globe.
The agency described the technology as an “additional tool to safely assess potentially dangerous situations before placing personnel or the public at risk,” an agency spokesperson told the Globe.
“It can provide real-time situational awareness in hazardous, confined, or tactically uncertain environments,” the spokesperson said. “Allowing officers to make more informed decisions and, when possible, resolve incidents without immediately introducing personnel into a dangerous area.”
The contract says the purchase supports the Subterranean Border Defense Act and Executive Order 14159, titled ‘Protecting the American People Against Invasion.’
“Without this item, DHS will have fewer tools to safely evaluate high-risk environments, which could increase risk to personnel, delay response activities, and reduce mission effectiveness during time sensitive or dangerous operations,” the contract states.
The robot dogs will also be used to combat cartels operating in the United States, along with human smuggling and trafficking networks, according to the contract.
The systems can “detect radiation, toxic gas leaks, and explosive threats in urban environments or disaster zones, and also to enable remote observation, inspection, documentation, and hazard assessment,” the contract adds.
The robots, named Cerberus after the mythical three-headed canine guarding the gates of hell, will likely be used by Homeland Security Investigations agents and other tactical teams to search buildings and reduce officers’ exposure to danger, multiple Homeland Security sources told The Daily Wire.
“Robots like this aren’t new to law enforcement,” Scott Mechkowski, a former ICE New York field office deputy director, said. “Police departments and federal agencies across the globe have used them for years to clear structures and handle barricaded subjects and to search buildings, offices, so officers don’t have to walk blind into a situation that could get them killed.”
“ICE is buying a tool to look before you go in. In my experience, equipment like this usually sits with the tactical teams, not with officers on routine arrests, and the deployment decision is made at a supervisory level or in accordance with the agency’s guidelines,” Mechkowski added.
Agents can remotely operate the robot dogs from a distance of 1,500 kilometers, or roughly 900 miles, according to the contract.
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