A part of crime prevention is being the eyes and ears of the police. With the New CAPTURE Program, these can be electronic eyes and ears.
The RCMP’s CAPTURE program is being launched Alberta-wide, including in the Drumheller and surrounding areas.
The CAPTURE (Community Assisted Policing Through Use of Recorded Evidence) program allows members of the public to register their home or business security cameras with the RCMP with the goal of assisting RCMP and reducing the amount of time it would take investigators to locate potential video evidence at the time of crime and investigation.
Staff Sergeant Robert Harms says it has been in place for a number of years, including in Red Deer.
“The program has been in place for some time in other communities and is being expanded Alberta-wide given a number of success stories. This is one more step towards keeping our communities safe and is another example of Community Based Policing,” he said.
As residents register their cameras, investigators are able to view a map of registered cameras in the area of an incident or crime scene and can contact the owners of the cameras.
“This is all with the idea that we can do this very quickly,” he said. “If the owner of the camera agrees, they can load it into the system, and then our officers can review it remotely,” he said.
The program is completely voluntary, and the participant isn’t compelled to hand over footage if they are not comfortable. The list of properties is confidential, and only police have access to it. No personal information is shared.
He also notes there are protocols on the police’s end. It can not be used for ‘fishing’ or non-investigative ends.
“It is all voluntary and speaks to the partnership between the police and the community, and we are hoping people will sign up. The more, the better, and the more powerful it is for us.”
It’s just another tool to help us address crime and hopefully, address it as quickly as possible.
For more information or to register go to www.ruralalbertacapture.ca
