How police used licence plate reader technology to locate suspected shooter Bryce Williams

Watch the video above: Use of a “licence plate reader” device was crucial in locating the vehicle belonging to Vester Lee Flanagan II, also known as Bryce Williams, the suspect in a brazen early morning shooting in Virginia that left two local journalists dead.

TORONTO – The suspected shooter of a reporter and cameraman in Virginia was located using some of the most recent technology available to law enforcement agencies: a licence plate reader.

READ MORE: ‘Our hearts are broken’: Tributes pour in for journalists killed during live report

Vester Lee Flanagan II, also known as Bryce Williams, was apprehended when state police located his vehicle on Interstate 66. He ran his car off the road and was found with a gunshot wound.

According to local authorities, the state trooper was notified by an on-board licence plate reader called the Automatic Licence Plate Recognition (ALPR) system that a wanted licence plate was found to be in view of the cruiser.

An APLR system uses cameras that are mounted on the exterior of a police car and are connected to a computer inside the cruiser. The camera automatically reads licence plates and runs them through a database. If a particular licence plate is located, it notifies the officer with an alarm and a notification on the computer screen.

In 2013, the Ontario Provincial Police equipped 27 of its cruisers with the same technology.

READ MORE: OPP targets suspended drivers with new license plate scanners

On Tuesday, Sudbury, Ont. police announced the launch of the ALPR system to target drivers with suspended licences.

The technology has been around for several years and according to 3M, a manufacturer of the ALPR system, more than 20,000 cameras are in use around the world.

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