Niles police officers secure five felony arrests using Flock LPR cameras
Police departments have incorporated high-tech equipment to catch suspects and gather evidence, such as body and Flock LPR cameras.
Flock cameras read the license plates of vehicles and capture images of the rear make and model of the car to send data back to law enforcement agencies.
In Canfield, an image from a Flock camera reportedly helped Niles City Police track down a suspect and his car in a case where a wolf statue was stolen from a family’s front yard.
Flock cameras in the field
This past week, officers in Niles nabbed five felony arrests using the same technology, according to department reports on Facebook.
Last Wednesday, Niles police arrested the driver of a Blue Scion XB caught on Flock cameras coming into the Eastwood Mall Complex.
Police said the registered owner had a full state extradition warrant for his arrest. He was wanted on 32 counts of rape, 33 counts of gross sexual imposition, and 16 counts of sexual battery.
Officers found the car at Eastern Buffet and took the suspect into custody, identified as Ohio resident James M. Stephens from North Jackson.
Five for five on arrests
Police arrested four more suspects the next day with data collected by Flock cameras.
First, a Chrysler 200 was reported stolen from Warren City. The Chrysler was picked up on cameras coming into Niles before 3 p.m. Thursday.
Officers located the vehicle in the parking lot of Dollar General Market on 422.
They arrested two occupants inside: Warren residents Aundrea London and Kevin Ferguson, who now face charges of receiving stolen property.
Then at 3:45 p.m., cameras detected a white Astro Van entering the city on Warren Avenue registered to a man with multiple warrants for Methamphetamine possession.
A patrolling officer located the van pulling into Fuel Plus gas station and made their following arrest, Warren resident Joshua Braithwaite.
Thursday evening arrests by Niles police
Around 6:30 p.m., cameras detected a Dodge Ram truck entering the city on Youngstown Warren Road.
Police were alerted that the registered owner had an active warrant.
Officers located the truck and initiated a traffic stop on Niles Cortland Road.
They arrested Girard resident and driver Seth B. Wright and his passenger, identified as George J. Kaczmark of Girard, who also had active warrants.
Finally, a Kia Soul was reported stolen from Boardman.
Around 7 p.m., cameras picked up the Kia coming into Boardman on South Main Street.
When the vehicle pulled into Shell Gas Station on Vienna Avenue, Youngstown resident Jessica Kelly was behind the wheel. She was arrested and charged with receiving stolen property.
All suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty. According to an article posted on Hastings Legal, receiving stolen property can be viewed as a misdemeanor or a felony, depending on the circumstances of the crime.
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