New Cameras Aim To Curb Vehicle Theft Around Sioux Falls

God forbid your vehicle should ever be stolen, but if someday it is, the chances of it being recovered here in the Sioux Falls area are about to increase.

Minnehaha County is currently installing License Plate Reader Cameras on streets and highways throughout the area, including Sioux Falls.

As Sioux Falls continues to grow, unfortunately, so do our crime statistics. You can see that almost every day, in the news.

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Stolen vehicles are one statistic that is definitely on the rise here in the Sioux Empire.

As Dakota News Now reports, this growing problem has prompted the Minnehaha County Sheriff's Office to begin installing License Plate Readers over the next couple of months in select areas in Sioux Falls and the rest of Minnehaha County.

You may have already noticed several cameras being connected to poles throughout the city. At first, I thought they were going to be used as speed trap cameras, but come to find out, these cameras are part of the License Plate Reader strategy to help apprehend criminals and stolen vehicles.

Captain Joe Bosman with the Minnehaha County Sheriff's Office told Dakota News Now, Criminals aren’t tied down to one place; they move around, so sometimes the people we seek in Sioux Falls or surrounding communities are all in the same, one in all, and so we like to have that connection with our technology.”

How do they work?

Every one of these cameras is connected to a national database for stolen vehicles, and when a stolen vehicle drives near these cameras, it takes a snapshot of the license plate, sends that photo back to the database, and alerts authorities in the area.

According to Dakota News Now, these License Plate Reader Cameras are solar-powered and are designed to do more than just check for stolen vehicles. Authorities can use these surveillance cameras as a tool to help combat retail theft, hit-and-run accidents, and even aid in finding missing persons.

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The city of Madison was the first city in South Dakota to install LPR cameras. Now, Sioux Falls and the surrounding area are in the process of implementing the same technology.

To begin, a total of eight License Plate Reader Cameras will be installed throughout Minnehaha County on a two-year trial basis. If the cameras prove to be successful in helping thwart crime, the county will look to order more in the future.

Source: Dakota News Now