In reaction to Seattle's high rate of car theft, local cops are using Twitter to help track down stolen vehicles. The city is asking its citizens to contribute to the search for missing vehicles in 140-character bursts. Police departments have used Twitter to send out alerts to citizens, and occasionally to receive tips, but this new account launched by Seattle law enforcement (@getyourcarback) is explicitly dedicated to reporting stolen vehicles. At 2:28 p.m. on Wednesday, the account sent its first tweet:
A brown, 1984 four-door Toyota Camry with Washington license-plate number 455 XGP had been reported stolen from the Ballard area around 8 a.m.Source : SwitchedThe department will be sending out alerts via the Twitter account as reports of stolen vehicles come into the department and are verified. After being submitted to dispatch, the vehicle's color, year, make, model, body type and license plate will be sent to both officers on patrol and to the Twitter account. The department says it won't be updating when stolen vehicles are located, but we think they might want to reconsider that. If citizens can see acknowledgment that their diligence is paying off, they'll be more likely to participate. It's still too early to judge the success of the project, but it's always nice to see law enforcement trying new methods to combat crime.
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