The Associated Press
BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - Iraqi police have been outfitted with riot helmets, body armor, batons, flex cuffs and other supplies care of the Los Angeles Police Department, the U.S. military said Tuesday.
The gear was distributed last week to Iraqi police in the northern city of Irbil as part of an exchange program launched by the Multinational Security Transition Command.
The equipment was donated by the LAPD as part of an exchange program to link police stations in the United States with their counterparts in Iraq, the military said.
The program was conceived by Army Maj. Daniel E. Fricke, a Reservist from the LAPD who was called for duty in Iraq and assigned to the security command.
“What I am trying to accomplish is to develop a program for police departments back home to provide equipment, exchange investigative techniques ... and hopefully in the future exchange program,” Fricke said in a statement.
Police officers in Los Angeles collected the gear on their own in addition to paying all shipping costs. Another shipment from the department is being compiled and should include investigative equipment print kits, tape, print dust, and cameras, the military said.