Crimes

May 1984: A 17 year-old Eden Prairie boy was arrested for the random brutal stabbing of the night manager at Driskill’s SuperValu.

1986: A 14-year-old boy was charged with stabbing a 26-year-old woman in her home after posing as a door to door salesman.

1986: Officer Janet Koch and K-9 Major helped with the detection of $1.2 million in drug money that was recovered at the Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport. The City of Eden Prairie received $250,000 of the money under a federal forfeiture law.

1989: An armored car was robbed in front of the First State Bank of Eden Prairie by three masked men carrying machine guns. A substantial amount of money was taken. Although the case aired on NBC’s “Unsolved Mysteries,” no one was ever arrested.

1989: For the first time in Eden Prairie’s history, police raid a crack house. Police arrested five people and confiscated 41 grams of cocaine.

Staff

1984: Officer Rick Rabenort and K-9 partner Buck took first place in the National K-9 Dog Trials.

1985: Chief Jack Hacking retired.

1986: After a national recruitment, in-house candidate Keith Wall was appointed Police Chief.

Programs

1981: The department established its first K-9 Unit with Officer Rick Rabenort and Buck.

1982: A second K-9 Unit was added with Officer Jim Matson and Hawkeye.

1987: The Crime Prevention Fund purchased Officer Friendly, a large, remote-controlled furry robot, who rode a 4-wheeled ATV used for crime prevention programs at community events and in schools.

1989: The Traffic Unit was organized to address increasing concerns regarding traffic enforcement and accident investigations.

1989: Eden Prairie's Emergency Response Unit (ERU) was created. It was originally called the High Risk Tactical Team.

July 1990: The first Safety Camp was organized. Over 100 kids participated in hands-on learning sessions with police officers, firefighters and park and recreation counselors. Safety Camp was sponsored by the Eden Prairie Crime Prevention Fund and local businesses.

Equipment and Facilities

1983: The Public Safety Department moved into a new building at 7900 Mitchell Road.

1986: The department purchased two motorcycles to patrol the river bluffs and the highway 62 construction, among other areas.

1988: The department split from the Fire Department and was renamed the “Eden Prairie Police Department."

1988: Patrol officers changed from light blue uniform shirts to dark blue shirts.

1990: The EPPD installed its own 911 radio system. Previously the City had contracted with the City of Richfield to provide dispatch service for police cars, ambulance service and fire trucks. The new equipment was donated by Eden Prairie-based E.F. Johnson who chose to use Eden Prairie as a test site.

Events

July 1985: Three adults and one child were killed in an airplane crash at Flying Cloud Airport.

July 1987: A state of emergency was declared in Eden Prairie by federal officials after the City received 11.3 inches of rain in one night resulting in flooded basements, damaged roadways, mudslides and major washouts of river bluffs.