New cameras help Roanoke Rapids police make arrest in U-Haul theft
Police in Roanoke Rapids say automated license plate reading cameras are helping them solve crimes, including an arrest made this week for a stolen U-Haul truck.
While Flock cameras have generated privacy concerns in other communities, the Roanoke Rapids police chief said these readers are tools for public safety and are not intended to spy on anyone.
During the afternoon on Oct. 23, police in Roanoke Rapids spotted a stolen U-Haul on West Fifth Street.
Officers stopped the truck and arrested 26-year-old Lashaunda Hawkins, charging her with possession of a stolen vehicle.
How did they know the truck had been stolen?
“If it comes through any location where a Flock camera is set up, it’s going to give us a hit before an officer may see it,” Roanoke Rapids police chief BL Martin said.
Daniels told WRAL News the department has a network of 11 Flock cameras set up across Roanoke Rapids.
The police chief said small businesses in Roanoke Rapids raised more than $30,000 in 2021 to have the cameras installed and operated for a year as part of a pilot program, with the possibility of including the cameras in the city budget if the plan showed promise.
Flock cameras are automatic license plate readers that scan vehicle tags and alert police if they come back as stolen or wanted in connection with a crime.
Martin said his department has solved 17 crimes so far using the cameras, including drug busts and recovering stolen vehicles.
“It has been tremendous,” Martin said. “We have been keeping track of just some of the statistics because we hope to implement these permanently and get more cameras for the city of Roanoke Rapids.”
WRAL News has previously reported on privacy concerns in some other communities where police have implemented Flock cameras.
But the Roanoke Rapids police chief said the department won’t place the cameras in residential neighborhoods and any data they collect will be automatically deleted after 30 days.
“There is a policy in place that only allows us to keep certain information, we do not record our citizens, we do not have facial recognition,” Martin said. “None of that is implemented with these cameras, they are strictly to observe license plates.”
Martin told WRAL News he hoped to expand the network to as many as 17 cameras in the coming months.
