Police call for CCTV assistance
Horsham police members are calling for business owners with CCTV cameras to register their details to streamline procedures in the event of a crime.
Acting Sergeant Mick O’dwyer said modern-day policing required modern-day tools.
“Theft, property damage, assaults, vehicle collisions and various other offences continue to keep the police busy,” he said.
“We are always looking for new ways to prevent this offending and to protect people from becoming victims.
“Unfortunately, it won’t always be prevented and the focus for police quickly changes to finding those responsible and bringing them before a magistrate.
“Over the years we have found CCTV cameras have played an increasingly important role in terms of solving crime and deterring unsociable behaviour.
“We’re seeking assistance from local business owners to help us streamline our enquiries with regards to any potential CCTV cameras that might be able to assist.”
Acting Sergeant O’dwyer said many business owners in the Horsham Police Service Area had been asked by police if they had any CCTV cameras to help them with enquiries into various types of offending.
“Many of these businesses have
been through this process more than once, so this initiative is designed to create a register of known CCTV cameras so that the information we need is always at our fingertips,” he said.
“The information we get from the business owner is added to what we call the police Situational Awareness Map, SAM, a program that is only accessible by police.
“All information contained in the SAM is private and confidential and protected under the Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014.
“We can add the exact location of the camera on this electronic map. We also add which direction the camera faces, what areas it captures and how long the footage is stored before it is deleted.
“All this information will be available to access by police from the moment an incident is detected by us or reported to us.”
Acting Sergeant O’dwyer said with the contact details, police would instantaneously send a business owner a link to download the footage and send
it back without having to arrange a physical copy.
“Quicker identification of CCTV means quicker identification of offenders. This, in turn, should lead to quicker arrests, a potential reduction in crime and an increase in community safety,” he said.
“Even though we are beginning with local business owners, we encourage residents who have operating security cameras on any kind of property, to provide us with their details so that we can register their cameras sooner rather than later.” Horsham Plaza centre manager Allison Roberts said all plaza CCTV cameras were now registered with police.
“It’s to keep everyone safe. For long periods we don’t need the cameras at all, but then we might need them a couple of times a day,” she said.
“We are pleased to be supporting the police and working closely with them.
“The majority of incidents at the plaza are theft, but we also support the police if there has been an incident elsewhere and a person of interest has passed through our carparks or building.”
Mrs Roberts said several plaza stores also had their own CCTV cameras.
“It reinforces the knowledge that you’re always being watched and you just need to do the right thing,” she said.
“I encourage others to register, businesses and residents, because bad behaviour can not be tolerated.
“If there is an incident, it helps police to do more.”
Acting Sergeant O’dwyer said business owners could register their details by emailing michael.odwyer@ police.vic.gov.au with their business name, address, business hours and after-hours phone numbers, email address and the location of cameras including the direction they are facing, area they capture and storage limit.
He said a basic hand-drawn diagram of the building, marking the exact location of all cameras, was preferred.