VIGO COUNTY, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV) — A new tool will help law enforcement in Vigo County track down a variety of crimes from stolen vehicles, to catching a wanted murderer.
From gas stations to local restaurants, you are on camera almost everywhere you go.
Not only are you on camera but so is your license plate.
Vigo County is joining surrounding counties in installing license plate scanners.
“We have some that will go on the cars so if the car goes by, it would read it. It would say that car is stolen or something like that or if that person is wanted for something,” Vigo County Sheriff John Plasse said.
Aside from being on some patrol cars, 12-15 readers will be installed throughout the county.
Plasse said they would start in highly trafficked areas such as US Highway 41 at the Vigo/Sullivan County line, State Road 63 at the Vigo/Vermillion County line, and US Route 40 at the Vigo/Clay County line.
He explained the readers will only scan your license plate, it won’t track your speed or record you if you run a red light.
“Just the benefit of those when the suspect in Idaho when he was traveling across the country to Pennsylvania, they were tracking him through that so this thing helps us apprehend fugitives before they can kill somebody else,” Plasse said.
The readers cost more than $3,000 a piece and will be paid for through commissary, or the money spent by inmates.
Josh Roessler lives in Sullivan County but travels to Vigo County often.
He said he thinks this will be a big help to law enforcement.
“I think it would be a good idea. It couldn’t hurt to have them, it would make recovery a little quicker, [and] be able to catch criminals. It would be a good thing,” Roessler said.
Plasse said the county has a few up and running that they’ve been testing out.
The rest will be installed sometime next week.
