Leon County Sheriff's Office launches a new task force to combat crime in state and national forestsA new task force is taking aim at crime in Leon County forests by putting more officers in rural areas to keep families and wil dlife safe.The Leon County Sheriff's Office is teaming up with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the U.S. Forest Service to establish the Forest Preservation Task Force. State and national forests make up a third of the county's land.Leon County Commission Chairman Christian Caban say neighbors near Highway 20 asked for more police protection."We hear from our, our Highway 20 neighbors and that they would like to see more policing, that they would like to see more presence of police. You know, we're hearing about trafficking, drugs, illegal camping, labor trafficking. All these things take place in the forest," Caban said.The Apalachicola National Forest alone covers 500,000 acres.In 2024, the county commission partnered with the sheriff's department to provide roughly $160,000 to fund a full-time forestry deputy to patrol rural areas, including Lake Talquin State Forest.The dedicated deputy provides community policing for residents who use the land to hunt, fish, ride ATVs, horseback ride, and mountain bike."One of our top priorities is to make sure our families and our children are safe at all times, and that includes when they use our forests and our natural resources," Caban said.Caban noted the county has not been asked for additional funding for the new task force but wants to support the sheriff's office and first responders however they can."When you can work together across multiple government agencies with one goal, that's protecting our citizens. It's a true testament to leadership that we have here in Leon County," Caban said.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.Want to see more local news? Visit the WTXL ABC 27 Website.Stay in touch with us anywhere, anytime.Like us on FacebookFollow us on Instagram and X. ...read more read less