Central Whangarei could do with a few more Closed Circuit Television cameras to help fight crime, the district's police commander says.
Whangarei and Kaipara police area commander Inspector Paul Dimery told Whangarei District Councillors last week that CCTV cameras were an important tool in fighting crime in the inner city area.
Councillor
Warwick Syers asked Mr Dimery if the city had enough CCTV cameras, which are funded by the council.
"We've identified that we do need two or three more cameras. We have them in the bigger crime hotspot locations, but there are a couple of blank spots," Mr Dimery said.
"The top of Bank St and the waterfront area could do with cameras. They are a fantastic crime fighting tool and give us an indication of where trouble is brewing before it happens. They are a good safety measure for the community."
He said police would also like to get some mobile CCTV cameras to put in areas that sometimes became trouble spots, such as Whangarei Falls and AH Reed Memorial Park.
Cr Greg Martin said Hikurangi and the Tutukaka Coast would like to have a mobile camera available to keep an eye on those communities when there were issues.
"If people knew that the cameras might be there it would certainly make them behave better," Cr Martin said.
Mr Dimery said CCTV cameras induced a "healthy" sense of paranoia among criminals and wrongdoers if they knew they could be being watched.
"But there are still idiots under the influence of alcohol or drugs or because that's the way they are that will continue," he said.
Mr Dimery said police were also talking to central city retailers about the possibility of some of them having cameras inside the stores pointing outside.
The cameras could then be hooked up to a website so anybody could log on and keep an eye on the central city through the store cameras.
"That is a very inexpensive system to operate, but some people aren't keen," he said.
A team of 14 volunteers monitors the CCTV cameras which are wired up to screens at the Whangarei Police Station, but police need more people to help keep an eye on the city via the cameras.
Anybody keen to become a CCTV camera monitor can contact Constable James McCullough on (09) 430 2374.
Meanwhile, the council is waiting for a report to come back before deciding whether to extend the camera coverage.
