How Long Before Police “Batmobiles” Patrol Our Streets?

By MassPrivateI

Last month The Drive reported that an Israeli firm called Plasan wants to sell their version of a “Batmobile” to U.S. police.

Plasan which bills itself as the leader in ‘vehicle protection’ unveiled their new ‘Yagu’ an ultralight armored vehicle at the Expo Seguridad 2018 exhibition in Mexico City.

While the Yagu is designed primarily for border patrol it can also be equipped with flashing lights for law enforcement. Another selling point for law enforcement, the Yagu can be equipped with a drone launching system, so they can track protesters and activists.

Plasan’s sales pitch to law enforcement: our Yagus are a viable alternative to cumbersome MRAPS.

Plasan claims to have sold more than 32,000 armored vehicles which come with 400 variations to 20 countries. Unfortunately, they don’t publish how many of them were sold to law enforcement agencies.

Plasan’s new Stormer EX looks like an updated version of a Humvee.

The question everyone should be asking is, how long will it take for American police to buy either of these?

Police in America have a long history of acquiring military vehicles.

Two years ago I posted pictures of police Humvees, MRAPs and armored personnel carriers like the U.S. Army’s newest vehicle, pictured below.

David Schacher Photography LLC

The U.S. Army’s new ‘Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle’ (AMPV) is meant to replace the Vietnam-era M113 personnel carrier, which means it won’t be long before police are patrolling our streets with them.

To acquire new armored vehicles like the Yagu, police will use the old standby ‘we need them to keep everyone safe’ excuse.

Mathew Feeney of the Cato Institute said, “It’s very important local communities don’t view their police department as an occupying force,” saying “unfortunately, the militarization of the police really does blur that distinction.”

Oppressive countries like China and Russia are also selling MRAPs to police departments across the globe.

Six years ago, the Chinese government began selling their CS/VP-3 MRAP to police departments; and four years ago Russia began selling their Ural Taifun and Typhoon MRAPs to law enforcement agencies.

How long will it take for these countries to begin offering MRAPs to U.S. police departments at cheaper prices than say LenCO, who is re-branding their company as safety vehicles?

Don’t be surprised in the not-too-distant future to see U.S. police patrolling our streets in Israeli, Chinese and Russian made SAFETY vehicles.

You can read more at the MassPrivateI blog, where this article first appeared.

Top image credit: Plasan