Conroe City Council discussed a potential resolution authorizing the city to contract with Flock Group Inc. for installing license plate reader cameras as well as a purchase for cameras in police cars during a Jan. 11 workshop meeting. According to the city, council members previously approved the purchase of the license plate reader cameras.
The resolution is necessary, per the city, for Flock to obtain Texas Department of Transportation authorization to install cameras on TxDOT right of way.
According to Police Chief Jeff Christy in a Jan. 12 email, the Conroe Police Department implemented the Flock license plate reader system in 2021. The license plate reader system operates by using cameras that take photographs of the rear of passing vehicles to document the license plate and are commonly used in areas such as toll roads, airports and hospitals, according to Christy.
Christy said the department has made 80 stops as a result since first using the system in 2021. Among those 80 stops, Chirsty said the department has uncovered $600,000 value of property, including the recovery of more than 75 vehicles that had been reported stolen, and the recovery of a missing person.
“The LPR cameras have been a very effective tool in crime investigations and locating stolen vehicles; allowing for the arrest of the offenders and the property returned to the rightful owners," he said.
The contract is up for approval at the Jan. 12 City Council meeting.
