13,000 sign up to West Midlands Police CCTV database gathering evidence against bike thieves

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Over 13,000 local people and businesses across the West Midlands have now signed up to a CCTV database, allowing police officers to access footage from their premises if needed when gathering evidence, or preventing further crime.

Set up by West Midlands Police on September 16, 2024, the system allows local residents to add their home or business’ Ring-style video doorbells and security systems to a secure map of CCTV cameras across the force’s patch.

Ring floodlight camera mounted on a shed

Investigating officers can then quickly pinpoint premises that could’ve potentially captured evidence of crime, with people then sending in their footage via a secure link.

When asked if this system could help prevent motorcycle theft, a spokesperson for West Midlands Police said: “Absolutely! We know how inconvenient and costly vehicle crime can be – that’s why targeting vehicle crime offenders is a priority for us. 

Bike thieves on the prowl

“The secure CCTV registry will be a useful tool for officers in identifying cameras which may have captured vehicles – including motorbikes – being stolen or used by criminals to commit crimes.”

They continued: “The system does not replace the need for officers carrying out local checks for cameras or asking victims to provide the locations of cameras in the area which may have captured the crime, but it will speed up the process.”

A motorcycle theft taking place

Signing up is said to take just 60 seconds, with the police force only needing a name, address, email, and the number of cameras available. It will not give them access to your camera, and sharing a recording does not mean a need to appear in court.

“Investigators can use the system to identify CCTV cameras in the area of any crime and not just specific crime types,” the police spokesperson continued. “All of our 6500 investigators were given access to the system on December 18. Until then, a limited number of officers used the system to investigate real crimes as part of the testing process.”

A motorbike thief operating at night

West Midlands Police are only one of only three forces using a database like this in the UK, alongside Kent and Essex.

“Adopting the system is a matter for individual forces but here in the West Midlands, we can really see the benefits of the system,” they continued. “We’ve worked closely with the makers of the secure system to develop it for policing needs here in the UK.”