“The thermal imaging cameras the drones use may be our only hope of finding him. On the ground, it’s like looking for a needle in a haystack.”
Will short-sighted activists still complain about drones used for all domestic use?
By: Mike Parker
Christopher Dorner is thought to be hiding in California’s snow-capped San Bernardino mountain.
They believe
burly, heavily-armed Christopher Dorner is holed-up in the wilderness of
California’s snow-capped San Bernardino mountains 80 miles east of Los
Angeles.
The burnt-out shell of his pick-up
truck was discovered in the nearby resort of Big Bear, where residents
and tourists have been warned to stay indoors as the search continues.
Yesterday, as a task force of 125 officers, some riding Snowcats in the rugged terrain, continued their search, it was revealed that Dorner has become the first human target for remotely-controlled airborne drones on US soil.
A senior police source said: “The thermal
imaging cameras the drones use may be our only hope of finding him. On
the ground, it’s like looking for a needle in a haystack.”
Asked
directly if drones have already been deployed, Riverside Police Chief
Sergio Diaz, who is jointly leading the task force, said: “We are using
all the tools at our disposal.”
The use of
drones was later confirmed by Customs and Border Patrol spokesman Ralph
DeSio, who revealed agents have been prepared for Dorner to make a dash
for the Mexican border since his rampage began.
He
said: “This agency has been at the forefront of domestic use of drones
by law enforcement. That’s all I can say at the moment.”
Dorner,
who was fired from the LAPD in 2008 for lying about a fellow officer he
accused of misconduct, has vowed to wreak revenge by “killing officers
and their families”.
In a chilling, 6,000 word
“manifesto” on his Facebook page he has threatened to “bring warfare” to
the LAPD and “utilise every bit of small arms training, demolition,
ordinance and survival training I’ve been given.”
Dorner,
33, who rose to the rank of lieutenant in the US Navy and served in
Iraq before joining the LAPD, also ominously warned that he has
shoulder-launched surface-to-air missiles to “knock out” any helicopters
used to pursue him.
Last night, Brian Levin, a
psychologist and professor of criminal justice at Cal State University,
San Bernardino, said: “We’re talking about someone who basically
perceives that a tremendous injustice has been done to him that took his
life and identity.
“Now he is, quite literally, at war.”
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