White/Blue Homeland Security SUV on i-5 Towards Seattle w/ Lights Flashing

This is a current event because it just happened (@11:35AM Pacific Time)

I was a passenger in a car travelling south i-5, we had just left Seattle to go to Federal Way and were maybe halfway there when we saw, in the northbound lanes, one of those White Homeland Security SUVs (image search for reference) with the lights flashing, heading north, in the direction of Seattle (and a lot of other places in the Puget Sound area, like Kirkland, home of Nintendo, or Bellevue, home of TMobile/Metro for example, Bill Gates home is somewhere around the area and Microsoft, and Amazon also has a location in the area but don't think theyre headquartered here. Also SeaTac airport, Boeing Field Airport, lots of boeing facilities up and down The Sound).


I posted it because I've never seen one of those with their lights on.And I figured he PROBABLY wasn't just assisting with a traffic stop (or...so they DO that??) and...

I thought maybe someone at ATS could tell me and also inform others who may see this thread, for future notice:

What reasons would one of those have their lights flashing, going down the freeway?

DO they assist with a traffic stop for any reason not related to "Homeland Security"?

Do they respond to an "officer down, shots fired" situation? Or does it have to be like a "all available units respond" situation like the Hollywood Bank robbery in the movie Heat, with Val Kilmer?

Or do they Only respond to strictly terrorist situations like 9/11, Boston Marathon Bombers, or whatever else they consider "homeland security"?


So that way, this thread can turn out to be useful and educational even if they weren't going to anywhere super serious... But they couldve been. Some drug bust involving crytpto currency scams happened in the Puget Sound area quite recently. I wonder if that was a HS issue? EDIT- This story about Bremerton police initiating a multistate drug investigation They had a guy in CA using cryptocurrency to help them to launder money to Mexico. Cartels?

a reply to: 3n19m470

Someone must have spoke truth to power outside of one of Seatle's handful of Free Speech Zones.

a reply to: 3n19m470

They (DHS) has a building in Tukwila next to Seattle, so maybe there was an even where they had to get back to the local HQ.

like Kirkland, home of Nintendo,

The home of Nintendo is Kyoto. The home of Nintendo of America is Redmond.

Getting the autistic, nerdiness out of the way... DHS have a larger jurisdiction than most people think. My guess is they were assisting on some kind of immigration bust.

DHS is going to be part of the Govt shutdown... He just wanted to get home "on the clock"

originally posted by: 3n19m470

What reasons would one of those have their lights flashing, going down the freeway?

To get cars in front of them to move out of the way.

a reply to: 3n19m470

DHS has commissioned officers working for them. They also supply security for some federal properties. Last year (iirc) 2 DHS police officers initiated a pursuit in downtown because the lady left the parking lot of a federal courthouse in an unsafe manner. Needless to say LAPD, LASO and CHP opted not to get involved. CHP did at some point get involved.

DHS also has, pertaining to the TSA, commissioned officers. In addition to others area they are assigned to work they can be assigned to whats called "Viper units".

They are roving units that enforce laws on commercial traffic (transport of goods / vehicles with all the different numbers on the side / 18 wheelers etc). However from what I have seen they are not allowed to conduct stops on private vehicles (restricted authority).

A shots fired call usually includes a county wide warble tone to get all law enforcement attention followed by whats going on. In my area its called a "code 3" (officers needs immediate assistance). All officers county wide and regardless of jurisdiction respond.

Any law enforcement agency can mutual aid another law enforcement agency, including federal, for calls / back up etc. It happens quite a bit at the local and state level. Not to much at the federal level but it does happen.

If the vehicles looked like the ones below they are commissioned federal law enforcement.

a reply to: 3n19m470

Amazon is of course headquartered there.

a reply to: Xcathdra

Nice response. Those are certainly the exact DHS vehicles I have ever seen around town here in Colorado.

a reply to: 3n19m470

So totally weird and could be completely coincidental. Time-frame and federal gov't office are the only two correlating factors:

The warrant is being executed at The National Science Institute, formerly The Geek Group, a federal official told 24 Hour News 8. The warrant is connected to a criminal investigation. Both the IRS and Homeland Security Investigations are involved. Further details were not immediately available.

www.woodtv.com...

a reply to: Xcathdra

Thank you very much, Xcathdra, and thanks to everybody else who replied. Yes it was the same vehicle as in the photos posted.

a reply to: JinMI

Yeah I wonder what Thats all about...?