Western Australia Police will acquire two new specialist armoured vehicles to boost the Force’s capability to respond to terrorism and other emergencies.
Known as BearCat’s, or Ballistic Engineered Armoured Response Counter Attack Trucks, the vehicles provide ballistic protection for police negotiators and tactical teams when responding to incidents where suspects are armed with firearms or explosive devices.
The vehicles will be purpose-built by Lenco in the United States of America at a cost of $1.1 million.
Lenco is a leading designer and manufacturer of armoured vehicles for law enforcement and defence.
In addition to being a key asset in the State’s counter-terrorism capability, the BearCat is used in many high-risk police raids and responses to critical incidents on a day-to-day basis.
In the past 12 months, the Tactical Response Group has deployed armoured vehicles on 45 occasions to incidents involving firearms or explosives.
The vehicles are bullet and blast resistant, and are specially designed to fit an entire Tactical Response Group team and their specialist equipment.
It follows the McGowan Government’s $54 million investment to purchase two new state-of-the-art police helicopters.
As stated by Police Minister Paul Papalia:
“The safety of the community is a priority for this Government.
“These specialist vehicles are an extremely valuable asset for our tactical police who are often at the frontline of dangerous and sometimes hostile situations.
“It means they will have the latest and most modern equipment to safely resolve what can sometimes be extremely volatile situations.
“Our specialist police officers are world-class, both in training and their response to emergencies.
“As a Government, we are committed to making sure they have world-class equipment and the resources they need to keep the community safe.
“These new specialist vehicles will ensure our police have the capability they need to rapidly and effectively respond in the event of a terrorism incident or other emergency.”
