The Investigations Bureau falls under the direction of a Deputy Chief and is divided into two distinct categories. With oversight from a division Captain, members of the Forensics Unit, Property Crimes and Violent Crimes details work to investigate criminal cases. A second division Captain oversees the Organized Crime Unit, Special Crimes Unit and the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
Crime Scene investigators work cooperatively with the Field Operations officers and investigators in collecting evidence at crime scenes. Depending on the evidence, they work with the ID unit and fingerprint examiners to make positive identifications. When guns and ammunition are used in a crime, forensic examinations are conducted by ballistic experts who have received specialized training.
Property Crimes detectives make up specialty teams investigating Burglary & Larceny, Auto Theft, Forgery and Fraud cases. The Pawn Shop detail works to support theft investigations while Polygraph Examiners are committed to confirming the truth. The responsibility of handling criminal summons’ and Sex Offender Registry falls under the Violent Crimes Unit.
The Organized Crime Unit is comprised of investigators who are assigned to narcotics, intelligence, gangs, and the Drug Related Death Task Force. Additional teams under the Special Crimes Unit include those who investigate domestic violence, elder abuse, human trafficking, juvenile crimes and missing persons. While officers from these units focus on crimes relating to their assignments, investigations oftentimes bring them together to pool their areas of expertise.
The Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force consists of investigators and electronic evidence forensic examiners. The Knoxville Police Department is the lead agency for the Tennessee ICAC Task Force and assists law enforcement agencies from across central and east Tennessee in investigating child exploitation.
Deputy Chief Susan Coker
Investigations Bureau
Commander
Email:
[email protected]
Phone: 865-215-7055
Deputy Chief Susan Coker is the Knoxville Police Department’s Investigations Bureau Commander and oversees all the investigative functions of the KPD. Coker was appointed to Deputy Chief in October 2022 and previously served as the East District Commander. Coker has been with the KPD since 1996 and has served as a patrol officer, school resource officer, training officer, patrol sergeant, Accreditation Manager, and the department’s Personnel Director. Coker also served on the Crisis Negotiation Team for 15 years and has been a Crisis Intervention Team Officer since 2011. She attended Bellevue University where she received a B.S. in Criminal Justice Administration.
BUREAU DIVISIONS
Captain Ryan Morrow
Investigations Bureau
Criminal Investigations Captain
Email:
[email protected]
Phone: 865-215-7298
Captain Ryan Morrow is the Knoxville Police Department’s Criminal Investigations Commander who oversees the investigation functions for the Investigations Bureau. Captain Morrow has been with the KPD since 1996 and has served as a Patrol Officer, Violent Crimes Investigator, patrol Sergeant, Property Management Unit Sergeant, Management Services Lieutenant, Training Director, Property Crimes Lieutenant, and Violent Crimes Lieutenant. Captain Morrow also served on the Search and Recuse team and the Explosive Ordnance Disposal Unit as a certified bomb technician. Captain Morrow retired from the Explosive Ordnance Unit in 2021 after 8 years. He retired from the unit as the Commander. Captain Morrow attended Bethel University where he received a B.S. in Criminal Justice.
• Violent Crimes Unit
(murder, rape, robbery, assault, kidnapping, suicide, and other sudden suspicious deaths)
• Property Crimes Unit
(auto theft, forgery and fraud, pawn shop, burglary and larceny, and metal theft detail)
• Forensic Unit
(crime scene processing, fingerprint identification, firearms identification, photo lab, and polygraph detail)
• Crime Analysis Unit
(obtain and analyze as much information as possible, in order to identify crime patterns, trends, offenders, and develop correlations, to improve short term and long term decision making, and the ability of the Department to manage, allocate, and deploy resources so that criminal activities can be stopped)
Captain Tracy Hunter
Investigations Bureau
Special Investigations Captain
Email:
[email protected]
Phone: 865-215-7000
Captain Tracy Hunter has been with the Knoxville Police Department since 1999. She was promoted to Captain in January 2023. Prior to being promoted to Captain, she served as the executive officer for the Field Operations Bureau Commander as well as the Lieutenant over the Forensic Unit.
• Property Crimes Unit
(auto theft, forgery and fraud, pawn shop, burglary and larceny, and metal theft detail)
• Special Crimes Unit
(child abuse, domestic violence, elder abuse, missing persons and human trafficking)
• Internet Crimes Against Children
(technology-facilitated child exploitation)
Each case is reviewed for solvability factors and is assigned to an investigator for follow-up based on the type of crime and the investigator's expertise. Members of the division conduct interviews and lawful searches during an investigation to gather information or evidence useful in reconstructing the occurrence or circumstances of an illegal act. The primary duties of an investigator include: the apprehension of offenders, recovery of stolen property, preparation of cases for court prosecutions, and presentation of evidence in court cases.