Tayside pilots body worn CCTV

Uniformed officers on patrol in Scotland are to be equipped with crime-fighting digital CCTV cameras as part of their body armour.

Tayside Police is the first force in Scotland to pilot the kit, which has been designed by SCS Security Design.

In 2006 Tayside Police became the first Scottish force to adopt a digital CCTV fitted to the bikes of cycle patrol officers in Perth.

SCS Security Design is now working on software that will allow images from the cameras worn by officers on patrol to be beamed back to the CCTV control room in live time.

Divisional Commander Chief Superintendent Matt Hamilton, said: ‘‘Fixed CCTV cameras are an integral part of today’s society and the benefits of its use have been shown on countless occasions to assist in the capture and conviction of offenders.

‘‘Body worn digital recording systems such as this new camera technology we will be trialing here in Perth are a way of equipping officers with modern technology to obtain high quality primary evidence, which will assist in the investigation of crime and presentation of cases in court.

‘‘Once the footage has been recorded the officer returns to the station, plugs in the hard drive and, whilst charging, the encrypted images are also downloading to a stand-alone system.

‘‘It is vital that we utilise new technology to make sure we are on the cutting edge of crime fighting.”

Paul Gibson, managing director of SCS Security Design, the security division of the Scottish Communications Group based in Perth, said: ‘‘The camera unit is a bespoke product small enough to be worn by a police officer on their body armour or on their jackets. The software too has been specifically designed by us for this camera unit. We needed to design a system that was fit for policing purposes, and one that would fit the security and encryption requirements.”