HALL COUNTY, GA — The Hall County Sheriff’s Office is adding new equipment to its Lake Lanier Marine Patrol Unit ahead of the 2026 summer boating season, using money seized from criminal enterprises.
The Hall County Sheriff’s Office said they used $280,000 in asset forfeiture funds seized from a local criminal enterprise to purchase a 29-foot cabin rigid inflatable boat for lake patrol operations.
The new vessel was purchased from Fluid Marine in North Carolina and is powered by twin Mercury Marine 225 engines, according to officials. It is also equipped with Raymarine electronics and FLIR thermal imaging technology.
Capt. Michael Mount of the Hall County Sheriff’s Office Uniform Patrol Division said the upgrade was needed due to increased activity on Lake Lanier.
“With the growth of visitor traffic on Lanier, we knew a few years ago we needed a boat with advanced navigation technology and communications gear so we could optimize our lake patrols,” Mount said. “Not only is this boat equipped with better technology, the cabin is climate controlled, allowing our deputies to work in all types of weather.”
The Marine Patrol Unit works alongside the Georgia Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to enforce boating regulations, provide security at lakefront parks, and assist with patrol operations.
Officials said two deputies are currently assigned to the unit and have already begun limited use of the new boat, which arrived late in the summer of 2025.
The sheriff’s office also operates a 2016 Sea Chaser 24 HFC center console patrol boat, which will serve as a backup vessel.
During peak holiday weekends such as Memorial Day and the Fourth of July, both boats are expected to be deployed on the water.
Lake Lanier patrols are scheduled to continue through October.