Any step to help prevent crime is most welcome, say Johor cops and Bukit Aman

JOHOR BARU: State police welcome any form of technological advancement that can help them prevent crime and better protect the public.

Johor CID chief Senior Asst Comm Kamaluddin Kassim said systems or gadgets including street CCTVs with face recognition technology would give them a great advantage in fighting crime.

“If the technology could be implemented in Johor, it would definitely be a great asset for the police.

“Not only will it be able to prevent and detect criminal activities, but it would also allow us to better investigate and locate criminals on our ‘wanted’ list,” he said.

Meanwhile, Iskandar Puteri Mayor Datuk Adib Azhari Daud said the facial recognition technology would be a good addition to existing street CCTVs already installed at Iskandar Puteri City Council area.

“At the moment, we have street CCTVs installed under a project with Iskandar Regional Development Authority that is also used to assist police in investigations and traffic matters.

“If the facial recognition technology were to be used in Johor, it should be in the form of an upgrade of our current system as replacing it with a new one would incur more cost,” he said.

Meanwhile, Bukit Aman has welcomed Penang’s move to install face recognition software in their CCTVs.

Calling it a commendable step towards boosting crime prevention efforts, Bukit Aman Crime Preven­tion and Community Safety Depart­ment director Comm Datuk Seri Rosli Ab Rahman said the CCTVs would certainly assist the authorities in keeping the area safer.

“We welcome every effort from the respective state governments or local councils to implement measures to improve crime prevention efforts.

“Installing more CCTVs is definitely a step in the right direction,” he said.

He also hoped that other states and local councils would follow the example set by the Penang Island City Council.