APD cruiser shortage may be due to cyberattack on city
ATLANTA - Police supervisors in Atlanta are scrambling to find vehicles to put officers in for service. A car shortage developed as a result of a slowdown at the city shop responsible for parts and repairs.
What caused the slowdown is the hacking of computers at City Hall. The shop computers are still down. Workers there have to make other arrangements to secure the car parts.
The problem got so bad in the Buckhead zone that some officers were put on a foot beat. Usually, that step is taken at holiday time to show presence around the shopping centers.
The shrinking number of working cruisers is also acute in southeast Zone 3.
The director of the police union in Atlanta said the situation has to be corrected very soon. Vince Champion said foot beats cannot be a replacement for squad cars positioned all over the city for the quickest response.
However, Carlos Campos, a department spokesperson, said citizens can rely on the 911 dispatch system. He said the law enforcement work is getting done despite the City Hall hack.