Police locate two teen runaways, one stolen vehicle using Sky Cop and Flock cameras

SPECIAL TO THE STATE GAZETTE

DYERSBURG, Tenn. – The Dyersburg Police Department used two different forms of technology Wednesday evening to recover a stolen vehicle and locate two runaway teenagers from Nashville. A third teen from Nashville was also arrested in the incident.

Two 16-year-old juveniles, a male and a female, were arrested and charged with being runaways and stealing a vehicle at about 6 p.m. Wednesday. A third 16-year-old male was not reported as a runaway but was arrested and charged with vehicle theft.

Police officers made the arrests after using the Flock camera and Sky Cop camera systems the department utilizes to monitor different areas of the city and identify criminal activity, Dyersburg Police Chief Thomas Langford said.

“This is one of the reasons we have these systems in place,” added Langford. “It is a good example of how our technology helps us identify and solve different crimes. We have used the technology previously to identify suspects and crime in our city...This is just an extension of what these camera systems can do,” he continued. “They are valuable tools and resources for us.”

Police officers were dispatched at 5:39 p.m. Wednesday, October 16, to Sellars Drive after one of the department’s Flock cameras identified a stolen vehicle in the area, according to the official report. A responding officer located, on Fisher Circle, a silver Kia Sportage SUV with damage to the steering column. The Kia was reported stolen from Nashville.

The officers used the department’s Sky Cop camera to get a description of the three suspects who got out of the SUV and the apartment they entered, according to the report. The juveniles were arrested from that apartment.

The juveniles were lodged in the McDowell Center for Children. The Kia Sportage was towed until the owner could retrieve it.