WPD partnering with downtown businesses to use their surveillance footage to stop crime

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Often times crime happens after hours in downtown Wilmington without any witnesses. The Wilmington Police Department is looking for help from ‘eyes in the sky’ to stop those crimes quicker.

One way to do that is by partnering with downtown businesses to use their surveillance footage to identify crime or suspects.

“A way to offer businesses to corporate with the real-time crime center, also known as the STING center. It’ll give the STING center the opportunity to access cameras that the business owner chooses. You know, they’re in total control of what the STING center would be able to retrieve,” said Lt. Greg Willett.

A recent meeting between the police department and Wilmington Downtown Incorporated discussed downtown safety.

Willett says while the reaction from businesses has been mixed, WPD says the information police receives immediately can be valuable.

“Allows folks that are working on duty in the real time crime center to be able to pull video footage of lets say a suspect, and push that suspect description out within seconds or minutes,” Willett said.

Some businesses feel it may encroach on their customers privacy. Customers like Courtney Wise say she often spends time downtown and is actually in favor of the idea.

“Yes, I think that would be more than a good idea, because we need to know who’s doing bad things around downtown, so yeah,” Wise said.

So far, a couple of businesses have agreed to help while others have declined to participate. WPD says it of course is not mandatory, but do appreciate any assistance they’re given.