Bensalem

New technology helping police in Bensalem catch carjackers

Police in Bensalem share how new technology is playing a key role in helping them catch criminals trying to steal cars

NBC Universal, Inc.

Police in Bensalem, Pennsylvania, are using new technology to help them catch individuals involved in carjackings.

Officers now use license plate readers that detect when wanted cars enter the township. When a plate is flagged, police can see where and where the vehicle is going.

"That fact that officers can now get notified on their smartphone or their computer in the vehicle. Really, it's a game changer," said Bensalem's Public Safety Director William McVey.

This new technology helped arrest several individuals in the township after police said they were driving around in a vehicle that was stolen during an armed carjacking in Philadelphia.

In that incident, officers got an alert when the stolen vehicle entered the township, and they were able to gather and surround the suspects.

"When the officer tried to stop that vehicle, it took off at a high rate of speed," said Mcvey. "They went behind an apartment complex where it dead end into about five other police cars that were coming into the area."

Bensalem police said they are processing nearly 100,000 plates in a week. Officers can now pick up stolen car tags and suspended registrations.

Contact Us