EDINBURG – Police trainees are taught to look out for concealed weapons during encounters, arrests and prisoner transportation, according to a Rio Grande Valley police trainer.

Edinburg Police Lt. Carlos Champion trains the new class of recruits at the newly opened Edinburg Police Academy.

He never knows what he's going to find, he explained.

"We've encountered people who have hidden things as small as a safety pin or items like that, to items as large as a short barrel shotgun," said Champion.

He said police who detain a suspect may do a surface pat down.

A suspect under arrest can be searched thoroughly, said Champion.

"We teach them to get in the pockets, look down inside the boots, the socks," he said.

A thorough search is permitted when an arrested prisoner is being transported, according to Champion.

The precaution is typical in this line of work.

"Just when I've been surprised, there's always that time when I get surprised even more," he added.