Lower Police Use New Database to Make Arrest

LOWER TOWNSHIP — Lower Township Police Department recover stolen property and make arrest, all thanks to an automated inventory system at resale retailers, according to officials. The department implemented a point-of-sale system called RAPID, which stands for Regional Automated Property Information Database, as a way to streamline the process of searching through paper receipts collected by local cash-for-gold outlets and second-hand stores.
Lower Township contains several cash-for-gold outlets and second-hand shops, that purchase pre-owned goods from the public. The shops are required by law to keep detailed transaction slips and either photograph or photocopy the items they purchase. Prior to the use of RAPID, the department would have to sift through paper receipts by hand to search for an item that had been reported missing. The system has been helpful in the recovery of stolen goods and has also saved manpower hours so officers can be used more effectively. The data can be accessed electronically; it allows police to react more quickly to missing items or to catch perpetrators more quickly.
Reducing property crime is one of the main goals of the Police Department, along with curtailing drug use and street crime. These crimes are closely interrelated. Thieves typically go on a stealing spree, often in search of things they can sell to get money to buy drugs.
Lower Township Police say the vendors have been key in to the success of RAPID, and although it may add a few minutes to each transaction, the overall good of the system is hard to overlook.
Lower Township was the second client in New Jersey to sign on to the program, which is used throughout the state of Maryland. The early success in Lower Township is in part attributable to the cooperation of the vendors, who switched their required administrative tasks to RAPID.
The program’s implementation was made possible by Detective Sergeant Macomber, Detective Boyle and Township Officials, who worked to bring the RAPID system to the township.