Raleigh, N.C (PRWEB) October 30, 2013 -- Raleigh Police Department used LeadsOnline to solidify their case involving a suspect who is allegedly responsible for the rise in storm grate thefts.
The suspect was arrested on Oct. 15 for allegedly scrapping more than 20 stolen storm grates between the end of August and Sept. 20. Raleigh Police say he is the primary suspect for more than eight cases involving storm grate thefts. The property recovered is valued at more than $12,000.
“LeadsOnline allowed me to search for the stolen items being scrapped and narrow down suspects based on the timeline of events,” said Det. Wilbur O’Neal, Raleigh Police’s former scrap metal detective and current pawn detective. “With the investigative information obtained from victim’s reports, witnesses, and LeadsOnline, I was able to place the suspect at the scene of the crimes within time, proximity and possession of stolen property.”
LeadsOnline is a nationwide system used to track stolen property that may have been sold across city, county and even state line. Raleigh began using LeadsOnline in March 2013 and has solved more than 100 cases that may have remained a mystery without the help of LeadsOnline. More than 100 agencies in North Carolina and more than 2,700 agencies nationwide use LeadsOnline to instantly search for stolen property that may have been sold at secondhand stores, pawn shops, internet drop off stores, or scrap metal recyclers, across all 50 states.
“Working metal theft cases, it is sometimes hard to track stolen metal and identify the suspects,” said Det. O’Neal. “LeadsOnline made the difference in this case.”
The suspect was arrested and charged with seven felony charges and misdemeanors.
For more information about LeadsOnline, please visit http://www.leadsonline.com.
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About LeadsOnline:
LeadsOnline (http://www.leadsonline.com) is the nation’s largest online investigative system used by more than 4,700 law enforcement agencies to recover stolen property and solve crimes. Each day, millions of items are added to the LeadsOnline database by businesses including secondhand stores, scrap metal recyclers, pawn shops, and Internet drop-off stores across all 50 states. Those records are instantly available to law enforcement agencies. The LeadsOnline system serves as an efficient and money-saving resource for detectives because it provides a cross-jurisdictional, instantaneous, and accurate database that stops criminals from escaping detection by selling stolen items in another city. An official eBay partner, LeadsOnline helps prevent illegal transactions on the eBay website by giving law enforcement access to the world’s largest online marketplace through automatic upload of all eBay transactions into the LeadsOnline database. LeadsOnline also includes LeadsOnlabs, a system for tracking those involved in the illegal manufacture of methamphetamines; a Metal Theft Investigation System designed to track copper and other metal thefts; and cross-checks names of pawn customers against the OFAC SDN list of known terrorists and narcotics traffickers. Each year, LeadsOnline is credited with recovering millions of dollars in stolen goods and solving thousands of crimes that are often associated with bigger crimes, such as homicide, identity theft, and arson. Based in Dallas and led by CEO Dave Finley, LeadsOnline works with thousands of agencies throughout the country, including the New York City Police Department, Chicago Police Department, the Dallas Police Department, and the San Francisco Police Department.
Jim Sughrue, Raleigh Police Department, 919-996-1200, [email protected]
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