Friday, March 29, 2024

Police CCTV to focus on Gold Coast

Gold Coast residents and business owners are being encouraged to partner with police to help fight crime as part of the expansion of the Queensland Police Service’s Community Camera Alliance (CCA) initiative.

The CCA program invites locals to register their CCTV systems with police. If a registered system is in an area that may aid an investigation or help solve a crime; officers will reach out to the owner to ask if they can provide the footage.

The initiative has been up and running in 15 policing districts and divisions across Queensland and has proven to be an extremely useful tool for police.

This is the first time the program has been expanded to include the Gold Coast, with residents at Varsity Lakes and Yatala now invited to register their CCTV systems with police.

Gold Coast District Acting Chief Superintendent Rhys Wildman said CCTV is invaluable evidence and a crucial investigative tool in modern policing.

“Locating security cameras can be a time-consuming and resource-intensive task. Knowing the location of established CCTV systems within the community will maximise the efficiency of police resources and reduce investigation times, resulting in swifter outcomes”, Acting Chief Superintendent Wildman said.

“This is another pathway for the public to be actively involved in protecting their own neighbourhoods. I encourage every Varsity Lakes and Yatala resident or business owner who has a CCTV system to log on and register it with the QPS to help us solve crime.”

The program is completely voluntary, with registration information only accessible by police on their secure database, and those who do register can request to be removed from the system at any time.

Gold Coast Mayor, Tom Tate said community partnerships were the backbone of creating safe suburbs.

“I applaud the Queensland Police Service for launching this initiative in our city.

“I know it will be well received by residents and will provide our hard-working police with access to more CCTV data when, and where, it is needed.’’

Commissioner Katarina Carroll said thousands of business owners and residents on the Gold Coast had provided footage in the past which has helped cracked many high-profile cases for police.

“Private CCTV footage has been an extremely valuable tool for investigators and has led to thousands of break-throughs in criminal cases across the Gold Coast,” Commissioner Carroll said.

“We are always looking to obtain as much evidence and information as possible to assist with our investigations and the new CCA will make it even easier for our officers to track down what could be the missing piece of the puzzle.

“This is an excellent example of how Gold Coast residents and police are working in partnership to make the community safer.”

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