Joplin Police Department Detective Chip Root retires

(From the Joplin Police Department)

Please join us in recognizing and congratulating Detective Chip Root as today marks his last and final day at our agency as he retires from the Joplin Police Department. 

Detective Chip Root began his law enforcement career in 1994 at the Girard, Kansas Police Department before moving to the Galena, Kansas Police Department in 1995. He was then hired to join the Joplin Police Department in November 2004. 

Since that time, Detective Root served in Patrol Bureau until May 2008 when he was selected to become Joplin PD’s first cyber crime detective. In 2009, the Joplin Police Department realized the scope of the cyber crime problem and the amount of internet crimes against children investigations being reported, which led to the creation of the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crime Task Force (SMCCTF). 

This task force initially covered a total of four southwest Missouri counties. In the coming years, the task force grew to cover 22 southwest Missouri Counties. 

In 2011, Detective Root was commissioned as a task force officer with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and was appointed task force commander in 2013. Detective Root also served as a certified polygraph examiner for the Joplin Police Department. Detective Root continued to work in his roles until his retirement on January 3, 2025.

During his career, Det. Root received countless Grand Cordon awards, multiple officer of the month awards, and detective of the year twice. His federal awards include the US Department of Justice (DOJ) Guardian of Justice award, DOJ Crystal Kipper & Ali Kemp Memorial Award, and FBI Task Force Officer of the Year.

 
While serving as task force commander between 2013 through 2025, the SMCCTF reported the following statistics.

-717 Southwest Missouri Children rescued/identified as victims.

-161,818 Child Victims rescued/identified as victims from outside southwest MO.

-880 Southwest MO adults arrested/charged with various state/federal child exploitation crimes against the children identified above.

-A total of 8,381 cases were opened during this period.

 
-4,319 Cyber Tips were assigned to the SMCCTF from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children

-A total of 4,256 cases have been closed during this period.

 
Detective Root has had an outstanding career at the Joplin Police Department and has served the citizens of Joplin and southwest Missouri to the highest extent. Detective Root will be missed at the the City of Joplin, but we wish him the best of luck as he is set to start a new chapter in law enforcement as the Undersheriff of Cherokee County, Kansas. Congratulations Chip!