We put the pieces back together and figure out exactly what happened.
Making sure the culprit pays for their crime is our job.

The Investigations Division is a critical part of the Sheriff's Office. It is their job to turn time backwards and reconstruct events in order to determine what happened. It is also their job to actively pursue criminal offenders and put them behind bars. The Investigations Division is divided into two parts, Criminial Investigations and Narcotics Investigations.

The primary objective of Criminal Investigations Unit is to conduct follow-up investigations of persons and property crimes that occur within Walton County. This alleviates the Patrol Division from the crime scenes & time consuming follow up requirements and gives them the ability to respond to other calls for assistance. There are tweleve (12) investigators assigned to this unit. They investigate major crimes such as homicide, sexual battery, aggravated battery, child or elderly abuse, internet crimes, theft, fraud, domestic violence injunction violations, missing persons, and much more. Currently, one (1) investigator is assigned to the Florida Task Force for Internet Crimes Against Children and assists with monitoring the internet for offenders who target children. Criminial investigators are responsible for monitoring sexual predators, sexual offenders, and convicted felons. Our criminal investigators work with many state and federal agencies, to include the Department of Homeland Security, Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Immigration & Customs Enforcement, the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regualtion, the Florida Department of Finanace, and the Florida Department of Children & Families. Medical and forensic interviews of children who are victims of abuse are facilitated through the Children's Advocacy Center in Niceville. When criminals cross county or state lines both physically and virtually, investigators work with other law enforcement agencies throughout the nation to see that they are brought to justice.

The primary objective of the Narcotics Investigations Unit is virtually the same as the rest of the Walton County Sheriff’s Office. Our oath of office is “to protect and serve” the citizens of Walton County, Florida, and the Narcotics Investigations Unit take that oath very seriously. The primary function of the Narcotics Unit is to support the patrol deputies. This support function enables us to develop a simple traffic stop on the side of the road into a major narcotics investigation, if warranted, that can have (and has had in the past) far reaching consequences. As well as supporting the patrol division, narcotics investigators develop information on their own, assist other divisions in the department and assist other agencies, from other county to federal agencies. The Narcotics Unit is comprised of investigators with all different types of law enforcement backgrounds. The Narcotics Unit is a specialized unit that requires each investigator to undergo very specific and intense training. Some of the fundamental training courses required are Basic Narcotics Investigations and Clandestine Laboratory Investigations. Other training courses include surveillance training, informant management training, aerial spotter schools, and various other specific schools to enhance the investigators knowledge. The exact number of investigators in the unit fluctuates depending on the types of investigations being conducted.

Activities and investigations by the Narcotics Unit include developing confidential sources, conducting "controlled buy operations", investigating drug trafficking organizations (which include clandestine laboratory operations and marijuana cultivation operations), executing search warrants, investigating prescription fraud, "doctor shopping", and any other type of narcotics violation listed in Florida Statute 893. Our jurisdiction for these investigations usually originate in Walton County, but due to the typical characteristics of the illegal drug trade, many of them cross county and state lines. These far-reaching investigations necessitate prosecution in other courts throughout the State of Florida, other states, and in the Federal Court system.

The two highest profile areas of responsibility for the Walton County Sheriff’s Office are the marijuana eradication program and the working of methamphetamine labs. Although these two (2) areas are high profile they do not represent the only endeavors of the narcotics unit.

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