OAKLAND, Calif. (KRON) – The Oakland Police Department is touting the success of its ShotSpotter technology, saying on Facebook that it recently helped officers locate two abandoned firearms and multiple cartridge casings.
ShotSpotter is a sensor network that listens for gunfire and operates in 90 cities. According to ShotSpotter, Inc., only 20 percent of shootings are reported by 911 callers.
“This year, the Oakland Police Department (OPD) has investigated nearly 6,000 ShotSpotter activations citywide, a 13 percent decrease from the same time last year,” the OPD said via Facebook.
OPD officers responded to “multiple ShotSpotter activations” in the 2000 block of 47th Avenue before 11 p.m. on October 6th.
When they arrived, “police found evidence of a shooting, which included multiple shell casings and two abandoned firearms,” the Facebook post said.
Then, someone was seen leaving the area and police “were able to detain the person to investigate their possible involvement in the shooting.”
“Officials were unable to determine whether this individual was involved in the incident; however, the individual was arrested on multiple pending warrants,” the Facebook post continued.
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The OPD said Auckland police had recovered more than 1000 firearms this year and “ShotSpotter technology has helped many of those recoveries”.