14 DAY TRIAL // Police officers in the United States can rely less on their vehicles and more on their smartphones to apprehend crooks. Intellicheck Mobilisa, which specializes in identity solutions and wireless security systems, has launched Fugitive Finder, a law enforcement app for iPhone-wielding cops.
Available as a business app for credentialed law enforcement officers, Fugitive Finder is not open to the general population and requires a $49 / €35.60 monthly subscription that the police station will most likely handle.
What the app does is that it allows law enforcement officers to use iPhones to scan government-issued ID cards or the barcode on a driver’s license and electronically submit the info to the FBI’s National Crime Information Center (NCIC).
According to the official description, “NCIC is a computerized index of criminal justice information available to federal, state and local law enforcement and other criminal justice agencies and is operational 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.”
The FBI will, in turn, perform an active wants and warrants check, see if the guy has stolen any cars, and even hand the officer a DMV photo of the suspect, along with other types of information that takes far more to obtain while patrolling.
Fugitive Finder further allows cops to look up DOL and vehicle license registration information and perform a check no matter where they are thanks to Intellicheck Mobilisa’s patented ID Check verification software.
The app is best suited for police officers who patrol on motorcycle, horse, bicycle, or on foot. Another benefit is the ability to perform a check while staying with the suspects during traffic stops instead of walking back to the vehicle to manually enter the driver’s license information in a laptop, according to the developers.
Detective Ryan Menday of the Jefferson County (WA) Sheriff’s Office, who used the product in the beta test phase, said, “The Fugitive Finder app makes our job easier by giving us the ability to have quick access to databases in the field where most policing takes place. We don’t have to go back to the (patrol) car. Furthermore, the app can return results much more quickly than calling in to dispatch. I believe in the benefits of the product.”
Dr. Nelson Ludlow, CEO of Intellicheck Mobilisa, said, “We believe Fugitive Finder is one of the most exciting new products we have built. Most police officers today already carry cell phones. This gives them the information they need quickly and in a mobile environment, so they aren’t tethered to their vehicle. We are pleased Apple is the venue for distribution of this new product.”