Police test earthquake measuring devices: automatic sprinklers
Düsseldorf - The North Rhine-Westphalian police have launched a test project with earthquake measuring devices in the fight against ATM burglars. A spokesperson for the Ministry of the Interior confirmed corresponding reports by the newspaper "Bild" and the "Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger".
"For several weeks, the NRW police have been testing the possibility of using seismographic data for the phenomenon of ATM blasts," the spokesperson said in response to an inquiry. "Bild" and "Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger" quoted Interior Minister Herbert Reul (CDU) as saying: "Sometimes we have to think outside the box and take unusual paths in order to give this life-threatening activity as little leeway as possible."
The background to the new project is research by scientists, some of whom live near blown-up machines themselves and whose own seismographs had recorded the vibrations from the detonations. According to the Ministry, the scientists approached the State Office of Criminal Investigation.
In the meantime, the police have also acquired their own quake measuring devices. The investigators remain silent about the exact use of the equipment. Among other things, the researchers had analyzed the detonations by means of the shocks. According to reports, the police also want to test whether the devices can help to alert the emergency services quickly.
According to the LKA, there have been 145 vending machine detonations so far this year (as of November 22). 2022 ended with a record 182 attacks on ATMs.
The testing of earthquake measuring devices by the NRW police to combat ATM burglars has sparked interest in the scientific community, who have seen the potential for using seismographic data in crime investigation. Furthermore, the use of such devices in alerting emergency services could also be a future application, expanding the role of science in crime prevention.
Source: www.dpa.com
