MINOT — The Ward County Sheriff’s Department donated 40 sets of expired police body armor and vest carriers to help the Ukrainians in their fight against Russia.
Sheriff Robert Roed said the North Dakota National Guard reached out to the Association of Counties for a request for such donations, which sent an email to the Sheriff’s Department.
“We happened to have a stack of outdated Kevlar® in our storage room,” explained Roed. “The company only guarantees it for five years, otherwise it will break down with moisture, either rain or sweat. It’ll last longer, but that’s as far as the company says it will last.”
Since the department replaces the armor every five years, Roed says over the past 30 years it has collected 40 sets of vests that can no longer be used in Ward County.
“We don’t want to throw it away, and we can’t sell it, because we don’t want it to get into the wrong hands,” said Roed. “When this opportunity came up, a lot of our employees are veterans themselves, and we have a lot of patriots in the office here, so when the email came out, we jumped on the opportunity.”
Roed says the Kevlar® panels can be used as a vest as well as door panels, or any way it can be used for further protection.
“You just fasten it inside the vehicle, and it’s another layer of protection,” Roed explained.
Other counties and some other states are also donating similar items to Ukraine, according to Roed. “City wide law enforcement is participating,” he added.
