Tesla Cybertruck unveiled at California police department part of youth-outreach effort
A California police department will be patrolling their streets in style after a new vehicle is added to the force.
The Irvine Police Department announced that residents will soon see a Tesla Cybertruck cruising in the area.
Irvine, California is 40 miles south of Los Angeles.
The new police cruiser, which can retail for $95,000 or more, will not pull you over. Instead, the police department has alternative duties for this vehicle.
“The truck will support our Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) program and community outreach efforts,” the department said in a Facebook post.
“For over three decades, our DARE officers have driven attention-grabbing and one-of-a-kind vehicles that never fail to turn heads and excite students,” the post said. “IPD believes in the continual education of students and is one of only two DARE programs in the entire state.”
The police department's fact sheet revealed that the cost of the Cybertruck was $132,363.21 with an additional $20,811.82 for an emergency equipment installation.
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Watch as Tesla Cybertruck cruises through the streets of California
The police department adds the Cybertruck to the variety of "unique" vehicles that they already have.
"The goal always was to make those vehicles be head turning, highly visible and to bring excitement to the community," Kyle Oldoerp, an Irvine Police Department spokesperson, told Paste BN. "When the Cybertruck came out, we needed to replace a vehicle that was aging and saw this as an opportunity to add another unique vehicle to our fleet of vehicles."
Oldoerp said the department had a PT Cruiser, specially painted trucks and mini trucks for the DARE program since it began.
Cybertruck will be used for community outreach
The Irvine Police Department says that although the Cybertruck is not your average law enforcement cruiser, it is not the first time the department has done something like this.
“IPD passionately seeks unique and innovative ways to connect with our community and the youth of Irvine,” the post said. “Officers on horseback, working with a support K9, or driving a unique vehicle such as the Cybertruck start positive conversations and promote community interaction.”
The police department plans to make several stops in the community so that their residents can get an opportunity to see the Cybertruck.
"We're really excited to get this out into the community and have that positive interaction with our students, our teachers," Oldoerp said. "That community interaction is priceless."
This article has been updated to add new information.
Ahjané Forbes is a reporter on the National Trending Team at Paste BN. Ahjané covers breaking news, car recalls, crime, health, lottery and public policy stories. Email her at aforbes@gannett.com. Follow her on Instagram, Threads and X (Twitter) @forbesfineest.