Indiana Tech chosen to host one of 10 High Tech Crime Units within the state

Indiana Tech’s Center for Criminal Justice has been identified by the Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys Council (IPAC) as a site for one of the state’s 10 High Tech Crime Units, which will be established and available to assist all of Indiana’s prosecutors with the processing of digital evidence.

Thanks to legislation enacted during Indiana’s 2021 legislative session, IPAC will fund the High Tech Crime Units, which are geographically located throughout the state to cover all 92 counties. Through these partnerships with local universities, prosecutors’ offices will work hand in hand with local law enforcement and college students to analyze and process digital evidence. The result will be faster turnaround for investigations and more thorough investigations, leading to more just outcomes.

“Indiana Tech’s criminal justice and cybersecurity programs have built solid reputations within the state, so we are extremely proud and grateful to be selected for this initiative. Our students will work closely with the Allen County Prosecutors Office to get real-world experience in investigation and evidence collection—experience that will be impactful when it comes time to enter the workforce,” said Dominic Lombardo, director of Indiana Tech’s Center for Criminal Justice. “We appreciate the confidence shown to us by the Allen County Prosecutors Office and the Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys Council.”

In the coming months, Indiana Tech’s site will be equipped with necessary staff, hardware and software to make it fully operational in early 2022. At that point, the counties of Allen, Adams, DeKalb, Huntington, LaGrange, Noble, Steuben, Wells and Whitley and their prosecutors’ offices will have access to state-of-the-art technology that they previously lacked.

“This is quite an honor for Indiana Tech and a testament to the hard work Professor Lombardo has done to develop a top-notch criminal justice program at our university,” said university president, Dr. Karl W. Einolf. “The learning opportunities for our students and the benefit to the region will be outstanding.”

Other universities selected to host a High Tech Crime Units include the University of Notre Dame, Indiana University, Purdue University, Ball State University and Indiana State University.