Air support The Aerial Services of the Puerto Rico Police Department are operated by F.U.R.A. known in Spanish as
Fuerzas Unidas de Rapida Accion (Joint Forces of Rapid Action). Its mission is to identify, intercept, detain and seize ships or boats with their crews, whose intention is to promote drug trafficking, weapons smuggling or human trafficking. It also provides air support to the ground units. The aerial services unit dates back to 1963, when the air unit was stationed at
Isla Grande Airport. Its fleet at that time consisted of
Fairchild Hiller FH-1100 and
OH-23 Raven helicopters. In 1986, the unit was integrated to form the FURA. The fleet was changed to
MBB/Kawasaki BK 117,
MD 500 and
Bell 206 helicopters. The BK117s were "state of the art" in equipment for police patrol missions; one of the helicopters had weather radar and full IFR capability. The Puerto Rico police became one of the first air units in the U.S. to operate a large BK117 fleet on police missions. The BK117 helicopters are no longer in use, and most were auctioned off in recent years. On December 31, 1986, a fire occurred at the
Dupont Plaza Hotel. People fled to the roof of the hotel to escape the fire, which had started in the hotel's casino. The PR Police air unit responded with the MD 500 series helicopter, unit N5231G. Lt. Julio Colón, the pilot, landed the helicopter on the roof of the 17-floor hotel, with just one skid in contact. Space limitations of the roof structure prevented a more stable contact with both skids. In the mid-1990s, the air unit received one MD 520N NOTAR system, tail number N128PD. Also, one
Beechcraft Super King Air, from the program
High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area. This aircraft has the same equipment as
United States Customs Service aircraft. The primary mission is monitoring of drug trafficking. Today, the King Air is "not airworthy". On July 26, 1993,
MD Helicopters MD 500 N126PD "S/N 0499E", was on patrol when it collided with a cable wire with fatal consequences. The accident occurred when the helicopter struck a high-voltage wire, not having reached the necessary height to avoid hitting them. The helicopter caught fire instantly and the remains landed near some gates of
Carraízo Dam in Trujillo Alto. Every time when opening the floodgates of the Loiza river, a helicopter had flown over the place warning to fishermen to evacuate the area. Today this type of flight is prohibited. Helicopter crew: • Pilot in command- Jose Ramon Bonilla Gonzalez, 54 • Co-Pilot-William Colon Burgos, 30 • Tactical flight observer- Edgardo Gutierrez Colon, 32 In 1995 the Puerto Rico Air Unit received five Bell
OH-58 Kiowa from
U.S. Army Donation. The OH-58C are Demilitarized ("demilitarized" means converted to non-military use or purpose, returned to a civilian field.) Today, this fleet of OH-58C is "Not Airworthy". In 2000, the air unit received three brand-new helicopters,
Bell 407 tail number N137PD and N311DJ, one
Bell 412 tail number N136PD. The Bell 412 was equipped "multi-mission" with rescue cable. In 2006, FURA received two new
Bell 407 tail number N139PD and N138PD helicopters with new
Wescam technology, including more powerful searchlights and heat-seeking monitors that it can use to search for a person under any obstacle; also, it received a telephoto camera that can see a license plate very clearly from in the air. The system are capable of transmitting live image to ground units. In 2007, police superintendent
Pedro Toledo, had plans to buy a
blimp for use in the fight against drug trafficking. Purchase never materialized because of the high cost of maintenance. In December 2008, the air unit lost a
Cessna 172 on the west side of the island. They were on patrol, looking for suspicious vessel approaching the coast; suddenly the engine shut down. They were forced to make an emergency landing on the shores of Añasco. Three crew escape uninjured. Today the Puerto Rico police dept. fleet consists of 3 bell 429, 3 bell 407(one of them GX) and a Baron twin engine airplane. • The air division divides in two districts: Northeastern and Southwestern. The Northeastern district is based at
Isla Grande Airport and runs from
Aguadilla to
Yabucoa, the Southwestern district is based at
Mercedita Airport and runs from
Maunabo to
Rincon. The Aerial Services duties range from giving air support to ground units and coastal patrol, to Search and Rescue and SWAT exercises.
Communications The Communications Division consists of four sections: 1. Trucking systems and Microwave, 2. Special Services, 3. Telephone, and Radio Workshop. Each region of enforcement has people from these sections providing the department with communication support. The Puerto Rico Police radio communications are on
VHF,
UHF and 800 MHz. Trunked radio system was upgraded to P-25 phase 1 Atlas whit 20 Tower to converge all island There is also systems
interoperability, capable of communication in VHF, UHF, 700 MHz, 800 MHz and P-25 on the VHF, UHF, 700 MHz, 800 MHz. Also, the 13 police regions runs a trunk 800 MHz digital system. Backup VHF system whit 13 repeaters around the island. Also with more disaggregated data and communications centers as follows: 13 control centers, one in each Region Police, a Command Center in Fura and Radio Control Center that is responsible for monitoring all Regions and Units of the Police of Puerto Rico And coordinates internal and external resources. Puerto Rico Police use the
Ten-code on police radio communication.
Ground transportation During its early years, the PRPD used horses,
Harley Davidson motorcycles and Jeeps to patrol downtown and tourism areas. Horses were also used to patrol mountainous areas. In 1955 the fleet consisted of motorcycles, Volkswagen Beetles, and military jeeps. In the mid-1960s, Governor
Roberto Sánchez Vilella changed the fleet to the
Plymouth Fury. By 1985, the ground patrol fleet consisted of the
Plymouth Gran Fury,
Ford LTD Crown Victoria and confiscated vehicles, converted into either marked or unmarked police vehicles, until the late 1980s. During the administration of
Pedro Rosselló, the fleet switched to the
Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor. Other vehicles in the new fleet included the
Jeep Cherokee,
Mitsubishi Montero and
Chevrolet Caprice. Patrol cars have had several different color schemes. They were originally painted dark blue, with white on the front doors and top (
see image at right), showing the department logo on the front doors. A blue, rotating code-3 light bar was mounted on the roof. Unmarked vehicles used a single rotating light inside the car. In 1998, the vehicles and colors of the patrol car fleet changed. The new fleet consisted of the Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor, Mitsubishi Montero,
Chevrolet Camaro,
Ford Mustang, Honda Police CB500P, Harley Davidson
Electra Glide,
Ford Excursion and
Ford Expedition (these last two only for
SWAT). The new color scheme was a white base all over the car, with two color lines, blue and yellow crossed, running along the side (
see image below). From the rear of the car to its midpoint, the blue line ran above the yellow line. At the midpoint, the blue line crossed behind the yellow line, placing the blue line below the yellow line from there to the front tire. The logo was on the front doors. "Emergencia 9-1-1" (Emergency 9-1-1) was marked on each side at the rear of the car. Vehicle unit numbers were placed near the front door, just over the edge of the front tires on both sides; also on the roof, behind the light bar. Governor
Sila M. Calderon integrated the
Ford Explorer and the
Ford Taurus into the fleet in 2003, replacing the Mitsubishi Montero and Jeep Cherokee, although specialized units continued using some of these older models. The Ford Mustang replaced the Chevrolet Camaro and the
Honda Shadow motorcycle replaced Honda Police CB500P motorcycle.
Harley Davidson Electra Glide motorcycles remained in service, but were assigned only to veteran motorcycle patrol officers and the governor's escort. This was also when LED light bars were introduced to the fleet, on the
Chevrolet Impala cars assigned only to the Public Residential Security Corps. A minor change in the paint scheme in 2003 was applied only to Highway Patrol vehicles; the blue line continued over the yellow line from rear to front, without intersecting, but with a curve toward the front door. Search lights were mounted on each side of the light bar on the roof, and also on the front sides. The PRPD logo was placed on the left side of the front door, rather than being centered on the door, while the highway patrol logo was centered on the rear doors. A newer model of the Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor jointed the fleet in 2008, along with the
Chevrolet Trailblazer. A new paint job was applied a month after the new vehicles arrived, but it affected only the Ford Crown Victoria cars. The new design started with a white base color, then yellow was painted on the first half down on each side, dark blue was painted on the middle on each side, leaving the white base on the hood, top and back of the car. The logo was put on the front door in the upper left corner or right corner, depending on the side. "Policia" (Police) was painted in white on the dark blue area of the front doors. The motto, "Proteccion, Integridad" (Protection and Integrity) was painted in white on the dark blue area of the back doors. On the yellow area, the name of the precinct, district or specialized unit was marked in dark blue. On the back end of each side, "Emergencia 9-1-1" was painted in white on the dark blue area. The back of the vehicle was marked with the patrol number, plus 9-1-1 and "Policia". The patrol unit number was also applied to the top of each vehicle. The light bar on the 2008 Interceptors was a blue
LED with two search lights, mounted on the left and right of the bar. A double search light was placed in the middle front. The Ford Explorer was replaced by the Chevrolet Trailblazer for patrol duties, but many specialized units still use the Explorer. In July 2009, the Highway Patrol division received the newest fleet of
Dodge Charger for its Expressway Division, replacing the Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor. These vehicles have a gray base color, with the logo in the middle of the front door and the words
Autopistas (Expressway) and "Highway Patrol" under the logo. On the back side of the trunk is the logo of the Puerto Rico Department of Transportation and Public Works, in a smaller size. A blue LED light bar is mounted inside the vehicle; it has two light bars in the front with two searchlights on its sides, and one complete light bar in the back. The purpose of the new patrol car is to be what it calls a
Patrulla Fantasma or Ghost Patrol Car. It surprises speeders by pretending to be a government vehicle of the Puerto Rico Department of Transportation and Public Works. The Freeway Division of the Highway Patrol received the latest generation of Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor. It has a gray base color, but the PPR logo is located only on the middle of the front door and without the logo of the Department of Transportation. A blue LED light bar is mounted inside the car, exactly the same as the new Expressway patrol cars. It plays the same role, Patrullas Fantasmas (Ghost Patrol). After a poll with citizens and police personnel, the results show that public respect for officers suffered from the use of the yellow, blue and white color paint scheme referred to by officers as "Poli-Taxis". On January 25, 2010, the fleet was completely changed, especially the patrol units serving the precincts and districts. The department bought 47
Chevrolet Tahoe cars in 2010 at a cost of $1.2 million of U.S. funds. This will completely replace the remaining
Mitsubishi Montero and
Ford Explorers patrolling the street for specialized units. It also bought Suzuki model 8000 motorcycles to replace the Honda Shadow. The
Ford Crown Victoria with the yellow, blue and white colors ("Poli-Taxis") will be repainted. Its new colors will be dark blue with reflective white lines on the back, sides and hood, the word "Policia" on each side, the logo on the back and upper sides, and "Emergencia 9-1-1" on the back window and back sides. Motorcycles will have the same paint, but with new blue LED lights on the back and front. Also, the maritime fleet and Air Fleet will also have a "makeover". These changes were forecast to be on the streets of Puerto Rico by early February 2010. The units of Autopistas (Highway Patrol) and Transito (Transit) with the gray base color and logo on the sides will not be affected by the color change. File:PRPD OLD CAR.jpg|Old patrol car in the 1960s, with Puerto Rico Governor
Roberto Sánchez Vilella. File:Puerto Rico Police Department Transport Van.JPG|Puerto Rico Police transport van. File:PRPD HP.JPG|PRPD Ford Crown Victoria from the "
Ghost Fleet" File:Policia PR Chevrolet Caprice PPV.jpg|Chevrolet Caprice 2012
Uniforms The Puerto Rico police uniforms have changed in style and color over the years. The PRPD uniform of the 1930s was a long-sleeve, navy blue button shirt, with a gun belt about the waist and support crossing the chest. Navy blue pants had a black line on the side of the legs from the waist down. In the 1960s, the only change to the uniform was the gun belt. The strap for the gun was only at the waist. In that same year, the patch was the Great
Seal of Puerto Rico under the name
Policia de Puerto Rico (Police of Puerto Rico). Later, in the late 1980s, the uniform was changed to a short-sleeve, light-blue button shirt. The police patch changed to an image of a police officer saluting a family, near a road, with the view of the city and the mountains. This patch is still in use. In 2004, the patch was changed to an image of a man and woman dressed as police officers, with the U.S. and Puerto Rico flags behind, with the city and a
garita or watch tower also behind. This patch is less popular with the force and not worn as often as the previous patch. The uniform in current use is the light-blue shirt, with long or short sleeves and navy blue pants, with the black line on the side of the legs from waist down. Lieutenants, captains, inspectors and colonels have used either light-blue button shirts or white button shirts. Officer headgear is either a black peaked cap or black police stetson. The cap has a wreath of wealth with number. Specialized units, such as the
Mounted police, wear the light-blue shirts, but reserve the long sleeves for ceremonies, wearing the short sleeves or the navy blue long sleeve shirt that says
Policia (Police) on the back and the arms for coastal patrol. The pants have a yellow line instead of a black line on the sides and are worn with
riding boots.
Weapons and equipment Lethal •
Smith & Wesson Model 10 (no longer in use) •
Smith & Wesson Model 28 •
Smith & Wesson Model 686 •
Smith & Wesson M&P •
Smith & Wesson Model 5906 •
Glock 22 •
SIG Sauer P320 9mm (main service weapon) •
SIG Sauer SIG516 (10.5” 5.56 NATO) •
M-14 •
Remington 870 Non-lethal •
Taser gun • Plastic bullet gun • Blank gun • Straight stick • PR-24 side-handle baton • Expandable baton • Tear gas • Pepper spray
Bulletproof vests • Type 3A bulletproof vest • Type 2 tactical vest ==Police regions==