Criminal cash used to catch criminals

Specially trained officers are now sporting body worn video cameras to capture video and audio footage of incidents.

The cameras have been bought using 13,000 of cash seized from criminals under the Proceeds of Crime legislation. The cash was seized last year from criminals and drug dealers during PSNI operations into organised crime.

This is the first time that such funding has been used for this type of initiative.

Commenting on the cameras, Chief Inspector Jason Murphy said: "The purpose of this initiative is to turn criminal cash into something that benefits the wider community.

"For some time the public have told us that they want to see speedy justice, but we have sometimes been hampered by a lack of tangible evidence. The cameras have effectively been bought by the criminals and we fully intend to use them to catch more criminals.

"These cameras will be used by officers for specific incidents and they will not record every interaction with members of the public. The intention is to be able to provide video evidence of offences such as drunken and anti-social behaviour, but the cameras could also be used to record scenes of serious road traffic collisions and injuries to victims of assaults and domestic violence with the consent of the victim.

"We hope that providing video evidence to the suspect and the courts will significantly reduce the amount of time spent by officers completing files of evidence and positively impact on the court process".

The cameras, which will be worn by uniformed officers could be used to record some searches and are also intended to deter assaults on police officers.

Chief Inspector Murphy continued: "Offences captured on video can be played back instantly to the suspect during interview and this will form a key part of the prosecution evidence.

"The video evidence could make the difference between leaving the police station and being remanded in custody. Those engaging in crime and disorder should be aware that we will not hesitate to record such incidents and to use the video evidence accordingly."