KSHB 41 reporter Ryan Gamboa covers Cass County in Missouri. He also covers agricultural topics. Share your story idea with Ryan.
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The Cass County Sheriff's Office is running out of room — and investigators say the stakes couldn't be higher.
The department's digital forensics lab, which anchors the seven-county Western Missouri Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, currently operates out of what amounts to an elongated coat closet, with only enough space for one detective.
"We have no other space left in the building," said Capt. Nick Sack, of the Cass County Sheriff's Office.
The Cass County Justice Center is 23 years old, and Sack said the department has hit a wall.
"We've reached 23 years, and we're bursting at the seams," Sack said.
The sheriff's office wants to build a two-story addition on an empty lot, adjacent to the current building, to create expanded lab space, climate-controlled evidence storage, upgraded infrastructure, and add specialized forensic equipment.
The lead detective working out of the current closet-sized lab has earned recognition from the U.S. Secret Service as one of the top 43 digital forensics examiners in the country.
The task force spans seven counties in western Missouri — Cass, Johnson, Henry, Bates, Lafayette, Pettis and Saline — serving a combined population of more than 300,000 people.
"It's not just Cass County we're helping, it's 300,000 people, their families, their children," Sack explained.
The scale of the work reflects the demand.
Last year, the task force identified 36 new youth victims who had not previously been known to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
The unit took in 245 tips across the seven-county area and built 190 cases on alleged offenders.
So far this year, investigators have identified 10 new victims and continue to conduct up to 22 community outreach events.
On Thursday, U.S. Rep. Mark Alford, a Republican in Missouri's fourth district, advocated on the U.S. House floor for $1.6 million in federal dollars for the sheriff's department as the House passed H.R. 8646, the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2027.
The bill includes $1,597,750 specifically to modernize the Cass County Sheriff's Digital Forensics Unit.
"This is going to give Cass County the tools that they need to help solve crimes on a regionwide basis in Missouri," U.S. Rep. Alford told KSHB 41 Cass County reporter Ryan Gamboa.
The funding is not yet guaranteed, it still requires approval from the U.S. Senate and President Donald Trump's signature before it becomes law.
Sack said the expansion is about more than politics.
"We don't feel like this is (a) right-wing, left-wing thing, this is a good human thing," Sack said.
Officials also pointed to the upcoming FIFA World Cup as an added urgency, noting that the Kansas City area's position at the intersection of Interstate 70 and Interstate 49 makes the region a known corridor for human trafficking.
Investigators said they are working to get ahead of any potential increase in exploitation tied to the influx of international visitors.
“I am very appreciative of Congressman Alford's work to secure funding for this project. It will directly strengthen our ability to protect children and support our partner agencies,” said Cass County Sheriff Jeff Weber in a statement to KSHB 41 News. “Expanding our forensic capacity means faster analysis, quicker identification of offenders and better outcomes for victims.”
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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