Hey Travis, Joseph here. Some police departments already used modified Teslas as patrol vehicles. So, naturally, some want customized Cybertrucks too. I got an internal police email showing one agency in particular really wants to be the first agency to own such a vehicle. The department then told me it could be used more for community engagement than patrolling. I'll leave it up to readers to decide whether that's worth $100,000 or not.

A California police department wants to be the first agency to have a law enforcement-branded Cybertruck, according to an internal email obtained by 404 Media.

The email Sergeant Jacob Gallacher, of the Anaheim Police Department, sent in early February read “P.S. I spoke with the Chief yesterday and we still want to be the first police agency to have a Cybertruck. If anyone can make that happen, I know it is you!” Gallacher sent the email to James Hedland from UP.FIT, a company that sells modified Teslas for use by law enforcement. The email was part of a conversation about the department’s use of Teslas.

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Gallacher later told 404 Media that the email was something of “a joke,” but reaffirmed the agency’s wish to obtain a Cybertruck before other agencies, even if more for “community engagement” than using it as a patrol vehicle.

“We would, but it’s not necessarily from a patrol perspective,” Gallacher said. 404 Media obtained the email through a public records request.

A screenshot of the email.

In May, UP.FIT’s parent company Unplugged Performance posted a video of what a modified Cybertruck might look like, Gizmodo reported. The video shows a Cybertruck with flashing lights on the top and bottom of the vehicle. Subsequently, a local ABC outlet reported that “the new Cybertruck, which is touted as the world's first, can be customized for tactical, military or search and rescue missions. The interior can also be redesigned to support more crime-busting gear including weapons and specialty tools storage, prisoner partitions and K-9 enclosures. It also comes with optional upgrades for extreme off-road usage.”

But Gallacher said that UP.FIT does not yet have a Cybertruck like this. “They haven’t even outfitted one that would be usable for a patrol function yet,” Gallacher said. Hedland acknowledged a request for comment but did not reply to follow-up emails.

“Until the price point on those drop, I can’t imagine them being used in a patrol function,” Gallacher said. A Cybertruck can cost around $100,000.

Gallacher said they could use the Cybertruck at parades or community events to start conversations with members of the public.

The Anaheim Police Department does have six Tesla Model Ys, modified by UP.FIT, Gallacher said. The department is using these as patrol vehicles, with lights, sirens, and “passenger compartments for the arrestees,” he added.