Ruddington Police expect to foil felons on four wheels now the Nottinghamshire Force has secured cash for a number of mobile Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras.
Rushcliffe Neighbourhood Policing Teams, along with colleagues from Gedling and Broxtowe borough areas, will be the first in our county to get the devices after gaining funding from their local councils. The force claims this will allow local officers to be more proactive in catching offenders since the cameras – which can be mounted in patrol cars – automatically recognise vehicles that have been identified as linked to criminality.
Sergeant Kulvinder Dosanjh proposed the idea to Local Area Commander Inspector Steven O’Neill and Mark Towlson from Gedling Borough Council after discussions with Gedling Borough Council officials about funding that was available. After some initial research with the camera makers Cleartone UK the council agreed to provide the funding. Then colleagues here in Rushcliffe and over in Broxtowe also got in touch with their local councils about doing the same thing in their areas. The first kit is currently installed and being tested by the Gedling Neighbourhood team. The rollout of the kits to Rushcliffe and Broxtowe will follow soon.
Sgt Dosanjh has high hopes they will prove to be an effective tool in the fight against crime – as he explains in the video below:
Unlike previous models of camera used by the Force, which were permanently fixed in to the cars, these new kits are removable and can be fitted into different vehicles, giving more flexibility in their use.
Inspector O’Neill adds: “The project seeks to give local Neighbourhood teams in Gedling, Broxtowe and Rushcliffe Boroughs their own ANPR capability. No longer will they need to solely rely on other Force or regional resources to support proactive crime or road safety based operations.”
The new technology is welcome news for Ruddington residents after a spate of crime in recent months which included several burglaries and thefts of plants and furniture from village gardens. Anyone who has clocked the number plate of a suspicious vehicle is urged to contact Nottinghamshire Police on 101 as quickly as possible so that it can be added to their ANPR database.
