[Scan-DC] Two Va. EMS workers indicted

[Kenneth Fowler]

Unless they stole information (property) of the county or motorola for
personal use.
On Nov 27, 2013 2:35 AM, "Alan Henney" <alan at henney.com> wrote:

>
> I've read this article several times, but still can't figure out exactly
> what the men did.  Any idea?  A felony charge seems harsh for reprogramming
> rescue squad radios without consent.
>
> I guess this was an encrypted radio system.  What kind?  Did they have
> access to a keyloader or simply reprogram an encrypted radio?
>
> Anybody know a scanner that will accept an encryption key (I don't)?
>
> Alan
>
>
> Bluefield Daily Telegraph (West Virginia)
>
> November 26, 2013 Tuesday
>
> Two Va. EMS workers indicted
>
> BYLINE: Greg Jordan, BLUEFIELD DAILY TELEGRAPH
>
> SECTION: LOCAL NEWS
>
> LENGTH: 502 words
>
> TAZEWELL,Va. - Two local rescue squad members have been indicted for their
> unauthorized incursion into the local law enforcement radio system that
> would allow them to overhear officers' conversations, according to a
> statement issued Monday by the Tazewell County Sheriff's Office.
>
> Carlos Darnell Baker, no age available, of Berwind, and Nathaniel Layne
> Dunford, no age available, of Cedar Bluff, Va., were both charged with use
> of computer to convert property/program of another (Tazewell County
> Sheriff's Office) and maliciously make an unauthorized copy of
> property/program of another, according to a press release issued Monday by
> the sheriff's office. The charges are class 5 and class 6 felonies
> respectively.
>
> The charges stem from an investigation into the unauthorized use and
> copying of the sheriff's office channels on their rescue squad radios. It
> has since been learned that Baker and Dunford also allegedly programmed the
> Tazewell Police Department, Russell County Fire and EMS, and the Virginia
> State Police channels into their radios. Charges from Russell County and
> the Virginia State Police are pending.
>
> The unauthorized use and copying of these channels could become an officer
> safety issue, Sheriff Brian Hieatt told the Bluefield Daily Telegraph.
> Downloading encryption keys allowed the men to hear officers speaking to
> each other. If other people obtained these codes and installed them on
> scanners, they could overhear police, too, and use the information to warn
> suspects and commit other acts.
>
> "It's not that we thought they in particular would commit a crime," Hieatt
> said.
>
> Obtaining the codes and putting them on other radios or scanners created a
> risk to officers, he stated. Reprogramming the codes in the county's radios
> will cost $4,700.
>
> "We felt compelled to offer these two men the opportunity to pay for the
> reprogramming of these radios prior to charging them," Hieatt said. "The
> problem is cost of reprogramming is high because every law enforcement
> radio in the county will have to be handled in order to reprogram them. I
> don't feel the citizens of this county should be responsible for paying to
> reprogram the encryptions, but that the men should be responsible for the
> cost."
>
> The sheriff's office was advised by the attorney representing Dunford and
> Baker that they would not be able to pay the cost prior to Nov. 1. The
> offer was made to allow the men to make payments, but no contact was made
> regarding this matter after the final phone conversation with their
> attorney, according to the sheriff's office release.
>
> While the frequencies to law enforcement agencies are available online
> from the FCC, the encryption keys used to secure those radio transmissions
> are proprietary. A person can have that information only if he or she has
> expressed written permission, according to the sheriff's office release.
>
> Dunford is free on an unsecured bond, and Baker was freed on a $1,000
> secured bond, according to the sheriff's office release. Both men are
> awaiting future court dates.
>
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