The Alameda County Regional Auto Theft Task Force originated in late 1994. The Commander of the California Highway Patrol's Hayward Area and the Chiefs of Police from Fremont, Newark and Union City formed the concept of a vehicle theft task force for southern Alameda County. Plans were made and submitted to the Alameda County Board of Supervisors who approved limited funding using fees appropriated to the county from Department of Motor Vehicles registration fees.
A Memorandum of Understanding was created which stipulated that the California Highway Patrol would provide field command and supervision of the unit. An Oversight Committee was formed to periodically review the actions of the task force and a budget was established. Fremont Police Department donated office space. The initial title of the task force was the Southern Alameda Regional Auto Theft Task Force, or SACRATT.
All of the sworn officers from participating agencies were, and still are, "donated" positions. The salaries and benefits of these officers are paid by the member agencies and do not come from the task force budget.
Over the years the location of the task force moved several times and the participating agencies have changed. In 1996 the task force branched into two teams, the north team (NACRATT) and the south team (SACRATT). The north team included agencies such as Oakland, Berkeley and Emeryville Police Departments.
In 2001 the task force disbanded the two-team concept and combined as one unit, ACRATT.
From its meager beginnings in 1994 ACRATT has developed into a full-service task force with a budget of approximately $236,000.
ACRATT often provides training to police agencies in fields of vehicle theft and provides all agencies in the area with crime analysis information and daily hot sheets. Allied agencies often send personnel on 30 or 60-day temporary assignments to ACRATT to further the officers' knowledge in vehicle theft. ACRATT provides assistance to any agency in the county, upon request. ACRATT hosts county-wide quarterly vehicle theft meetings which are attended by investigators from allied agencies in the region. ACRATT's services to law enforcement includes bait-car operations, surveillance and tracking, vehicle identification services and pro-active enforcement services.
ACRATT seeks to inform the public through this web-site, media contacts and public presentations.