Modern technology is hard to escape in today's world and now it's getting harder for criminals to escape it as well.
Many law enforcement agencies across the country, and in the metro, have been employing drones to help them better serve and protect.
The Council Bluffs Police Department deployed a drone in the early morning hours on Thursday to help them track down a trio of criminals. Lieutenant Darren Budd says although they didn't catch the suspects this time, the department has been successful in using it before. "We successfully tracked down a suspect with thermal imaging for the State Patrol with the drone, successfully located a missing person for us once."
The drone the Council Bluffs Police have been using actually belongs to the Council Bluffs Fire Department, but Budd say they hope to get their own soon since they are such a helpful tool. "Use it as a standoff tool during like a incident involving hostages or a SWAT team. Can use it at crime scenes, can use it for accident scenes, or if you have thermal imaging you can use it to look for different heat sources."
Budd says if the department does get a drone, training officers to use it should only take a couple days. "It doesn't take a whole lot. These drones are based upon GPS, they're much easier to fly than the stuff you buy in the store and try to fly around your house. It's an incredible tool."