FARGO – New technology to read license plates citywide is part of an effort to create a “real-time crime center” that could help prevent criminal activity, according to Fargo police.
The department began using Flock Safety as a pilot project in early June, Fargo Police Captain Bill Ahlfeldt told The Forum. Fargo police have installed 21 license plate readers and five cameras throughout the city, he said.
The police department spent $116,740 on the technology, which came from funds collected through criminal seizures, Ahlfeldt said.
The city has allocated $100,000 to maintain the cameras next year, pending final budget approval. The department hopes to add more cameras and license plate readers in 2025, Ahlfeldt said.
“We are currently trying to fund a second application in 2025 through grants,” he said. “The technology we hope to implement will allow us to streamline activities in our real-time crime center and would give us the ability to incorporate cameras from other city and private entities with the approval of the other agencies.”
The cameras and readers can alert police in real time if they detect a vehicle suspected of being involved in a crime, Flock's website says. The system also allows the agency to search for missing people, Ahlfeldt said.
“We already have over 40 success stories where we have either identified stolen vehicles or arrested people with warrants,” he said, adding that the cameras and readers have been used to locate a missing or at-risk adult.
The cameras can send data to the police department that could help officers arrive at the crime scene, Ahlfeldt said. That could give them information so they know what they're getting into, he said.
“It helps us gather evidence of crimes that have been committed,” he said. “It helps us gather possible witnesses or even victim information about major crimes in the city. It makes our investigations and evidence collection more efficient.”
Fargo isn't the first agency to use the technology. Other police departments across the country have also installed Flock in their cities. The company behind the cameras has numerous success stories with its devices, including arrests in bank robberies, tracking down suspects who fired drive-by shots, and busting a suspected gift card fraud ring in which officers in North Texas seized 4,000 gift cards valued at over $1.7 million.
Flock allows the department to network with other agencies that use the surveillance system, Ahlfeldt said. For example, if police are looking for a murder suspect, they could track them down if they have a license plate or certain vehicle details and a Flock camera or reader spots the vehicle in another state, he said.
“It really is a phenomenal resource,” he said.
Law enforcement isn't the only agency using Flock. Businesses, hospitals, schools, neighborhood associations and homeowners also use the technology, meaning Fargo police have access to the data captured by those cameras and readers, Ahlfeldt said.
The idea of using license plate readers is not a new concept, Ahlfeldt said. Patrol cars in Fargo and officers' body cameras are equipped with similar technology, he said. Having the technology outside of the vehicles and body cameras allows the department to place the readers more strategically around the city based on the data the department has collected, he said.
The use of Flock is part of a larger plan to develop a “real-time crime center” for Fargo using a variety of technologies, Ahlfeldt said. Currently, there are several city-owned cameras throughout the city, but they use different systems, he noted.
Once the department starts Phase 2 of implementing Flock, it can find a way to integrate those other cameras into the Flock database, Ahlfeldt said. That could happen next year, he said.
Some people have expressed concerns on social media that police might use the cameras to improperly monitor drivers. While Ahlfeldt acknowledged that any technology could be used for nefarious purposes, the department has an extensive hiring process, policies and training to prevent that from happening, he said. Supervisors also monitor officers to make sure they are using the technology properly, he said.
“I would tell them that we have hired very good people who are properly supervised and controlled and monitored,” Ahlfeldt said. “We would expose any such behavior.”
The technology will catch on around the world, Ahlfeldt said. Fargo is in a good position to benefit from the technology, he said. The city is growing, and although crime is low for a city of its size, using the technology could help Fargo prevent a rise in crime, he said.
“It's going to have an impact on law enforcement and the work we do,” he said. “In my opinion, you can either be ahead of the curve and use the technology if you have the means to buy it, or you can get left behind.”
