Columbus Board of Public Works and Safety on Tuesday backed the purchase of new police vehicles and a couple pieces of equipment used for detecting drugs and potential explosives.
Board members agreed to four requests made by the Columbus Police Department to purchase 13 police vehicles, a drug and explosives detector, as well as a digital x-ray system for just over $670,000.
A DetectaChem SEEKERe Pro Trace Drug and Explosive Detector, purchased for $44,789, will be used by CPD’s hazardous devices units and regional bomb team. CPD Lt. Skylar Berry, department spokesman, explained it will be used more so for drug testing. The detector is a mobile device that is able to brought on-scene to identify trace or bulk amounts of drugs and explosives.
CPD already has a similar device, called a TrueNarc, that has aged out. CPD Chief Steve Norman said the TrueNarc device was used over 400 times in 2025, with 177 confirmed narcotics identifications.
CPD received authorization to buy a a bomb squad digital X-ray system from Cuattro Imaging for $52,024, again replacing a system CPD already has that is aging out. Berry said the new system is more efficient, and involves placing the device next to a suspicious package, for example, to render an X-ray.
The device would also be used by the regional bomb team CPD participates in. CPD has used the previous X-ray system three times in the past six months, including in late-December when a suspicious package was found outside of Centerstone, later determined to be a hoax explosive device.
CPD also received permission to move forward on buying a four-wheel drive 2026 Chevrolet 2500 pickup from Country Chevrolet of North Vernon, as well as 12 Ford Explorer police cars, model year 2026, from Community Ford of Bloomington.
The pickup truck will cost $47,633 and the 12 Ford Explorers will be bought for $529,143, or $44,095 each. The city was able to save $73,884 through discounts by purchasing the 12 vehicles through the Indiana government bid process.
CPD officials said they used to replace police vehicles every six years, but now do so on a seven-year cycle.
