Intranet site helps to identify suspects

A new section on the intranet of West Yorkshire Police is proving to be a huge success in apprehending criminals. The force now has a most wanted section on their intranet called ‘caught on camera’.

The web pages show images of suspects that are currently wanted for questioning.

Officers are encouraged to check the special pages regularly and report anyone that they recognise.

If an image is still on the site after four weeks, it automatically moves to the Crimestoppers website for wider exposure.

The intranet pages have proven to be a great success. Over the last 12 months alone nearly 350 suspects have been identified with many leading to a prosecution.

Andrew McDonnell of the forces imaging unit said: “Being able to access these images on hand-held terminals while on the beat means we are not taking officers away from front-line duties.

“In addition to exposing unidentified offenders to every officer in the force, we can also use the images on our facial recognition system.”