Police need warrants to search cell phones – Officers
A POLICE OFFICER investigating a crime in St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) cannot, by law, conduct a search of a cellular device, without a warrant.
This has been an area of contention in SVG over the years but the law as it relates to searching cellular phones during an investigation was cleared up recently during an episode of Cop Chat on WE FM with Sergeant Angello Duncan and Corporal Aleea Stapleton of the Royal Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force (RSVGPF) Information Technology (IT) Department.
Answering a question from the host, it was noted that digital evidence is anything that can be found on an electronic device that assists in an investigation, and digital evidence has become an increasingly important part of modern criminal investigations.
Sergeant Duncan described digital evidence as information found on electronic devices that can assist investigators. He said computers and cellular phones can contain information that helps police establish what happened during an investigation.
Corporal Stapleton noted that SVG is living in a digital age, with phones and social media increasingly being used in the commission of offences. He explained that while devices can leave digital trails, the police cannot simply approach someone, and demand their phone and search it because they believe the person may be involved in an investigation.
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