PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — The St. Petersburg Police Department wants to double the number of license plate readers in the city. Officers told ABC Action News these devices help them locate missing people, stolen vehicles and cars involved in crime.
The cameras are strategically placed throughout the city to help officers be in the right place at the right time.
There are 25 license plate readers, and police are hoping to have 25 more installed, but that needs to get city council's approval first.
The license plate reader system is called Flock.
“Essentially, what it does is it gives us information on stolen vehicles, missing persons, anything of that nature regarding the specific vehicle we are looking for," Sergeant Anthony Alli said.
The cameras are placed throughout the city, and the officers can search a certain vehicle type and put in identifiers. The system will flag any cars that fit the description and alert the police.
“It is a great tool for our detectives and our officers. It places us in the right place at the right time. It takes out the process of having to drive around looking for cars, running tags. This system can essentially do that,” Alli said.
Ashley Limardo is also with St. Pete PD. She explained these cameras helped catch the person involved in a January crash when a white Kia hit a police officer and drove away.
“The flock cameras were kind of able to guide and pinpoint where the vehicle traveled to and where it ended, so our officers were able to locate that vehicle," she said.
The readers capture every plate that passes by and store the information in a database for a short period of time.