CHEEKTOWAGA, N.Y. — We have an update now on how the Cheektowaga Police Department and other local law enforcement agencies are using more sophisticated license plate scanning cameras to fight crime.
2 On Your Side was told a local mall owner has also bought into the program.
Niagara County Sheriff Michael Filicetti told us in July that he was pleased to see new technology being placed throughout his county. He called it "a tool we do not currently have that I think is really going to make a difference."
We told you that 67 will be installed countywide at a cost of $190,000, which is covered by a state crime reduction grant.
The town of Cheektowaga initially installed 10 of the Flock system license plate readers in 2022, and more will be coming.
Cheektowaga Chief Brian Gould says the system, with the devices mounted on poles, really can make a difference.
"Early on in our system, we had one that was a stolen vehicle out of Rochester, and the vehicle was stolen because the owner of the vehicle was murdered, and we were able to make an arrest," Gould said.
The readers were in years past mounted on police cars to detect drivers with traffic violations. But the expanded technology allows more accessible data which is carefully controlled and monitored for motorists' privacy concerns.
Gould says the readers, which just capture rear license plates and the back of cars, are tied to so-called hot lists of known criminal activity or incidents with notification of on duty officers.
"If a stolen vehicle drives by, every officer who's working gets an alert that a stolen vehicle just drove by that location. And it's really an alert within seconds, if it's a missing person. Some of them we've had vehicles wanted in hit and runs," Gould said.
And now for retail theft, Walden Galleria with two readers so far in the mall parking lot according to Gould.
"Known shoplifters because Pyramid corporation has invested in some and they share access with us," he said.
Some malls like Destiny USA in Syracuse reportedly have these license plate readers positioned at every parking lot entrance to alert store security as well.
Also, Chief Gould says the time and location data help prosecutors make a stronger case. against criminals.