Among the anti-crime tools at the Maricopa Police Department’s disposal are license plate reading cameras.
Police officers have access to data from 1,360 such cameras throughout Arizona, according to Maricopa Emergency Services spokesperson Monica Williams.
Maricopa has 32 license plate cameras.
Camera company Flock Safety says its products are used in 42 states to alert law enforcement in real time to the location of wanted vehicles.
“This collaborative effort[between law enforcement agencies]allows us to solve crimes, recover stolen property more quickly, and hold those who committed these crimes accountable,” Williams said. said.
Cameras were installed in Maricopa in 2019 and 2020. It can take still photos, but not video, Williams said. She compares them to red light cameras. They take pictures of the rear of the vehicle and use a kind of artificial intelligence to decipher the plate number. Photos are uploaded to the database. These are automatically deleted after her 30 days.
If a person goes missing or goes missing, license plate cameras can help law enforcement find them, Williams explains.
Maricopa Police found a missing man from Texas in Maricopa and brought him home safely in December 2021.
According to Williams, in another incident, “I got a call saying a woman was suicidal and was a danger to herself.”
Officers entered her vehicle information into a database to locate the woman and call for help.
“These cameras download photos of vehicle license plates that pass through the camera and match them against national and local hot lists for stolen vehicles, stolen license plates, registered sex offenders, and serious felony warrant subjects. ,” said Williams.
Maricopa Police Department shares information and creates a web of communication with more than 20 law enforcement agencies, Williams explained.
A recent example of the benefits of Maricopa’s license plate cameras is the photograph that led to the arrest of a man with a stolen car on March 5 in Phoenix. Here the camera captured the vehicle.
Alberto C. Mendez, 36, was arrested and issued a warrant on suspicion of theft of transportation and drug smuggling and obstruction of justice, according to Maricopa Police and Pinal County online prison records. imprisoned in the county jail.
At 11:52 p.m., police received a flock alert that the stolen white Chevrolet Silverado in Phoenix was in Maricopa.
Officers spotted the truck as it was making a left turn from State Route 238 onto North SR 347, MPD said.
Mendez was arrested without incident. A records check revealed that Mendez also had two unrelated warrants. He was jailed on a $5,000 secured bail charge for Maricopa. He was also booked on a warrant from Pima County for drug smuggling, with a secured bond of $75,000. For a $500 secured bond under a warrant from Maricopa County for allegedly obstructing judicial proceedings.
He has a court hearing in Pinal County Superior Court on March 10, according to Pinal County Jail records.
Other uses for license plate reading cameras:
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