cannabisnews.com: Police Go Airborne To Fight Crime!





Police Go Airborne To Fight Crime!
Posted by FoM on July 25, 1999 at 10:46:32 PT
By David Bamber and Ken Hyder
Source: Electronic Telegraph
A FLEET of police spy planes, without markings, has been formed to target drug smugglers and criminals throughout Britain.
Project Astra is being co-ordinated by the National Crime Squad (NCS). The aircraft are located at four bases around the country and are available at a moment's notice, 24 hours a day. An NCS spokesman said the planes would be used to monitor coastal drug smuggling and track vehicles moving around the country.The undercover planes carry up to £100,000 worth of high-tech devices which allow officers to monitor several suspects at the same time and co-ordinate a surveillance programme electronically.Individual forces can now track drug dealers from a port of entry into the country - or a drugs-money exchange pickup point - anywhere in Britain. Until now it has been hard to track vehicles because a helicopter would be too visible.The planes are already being used for covert photography of criminals' homes, many of which are deep in the countryside. Aerial surveillance has also been helped by the use of sophisticated tracking devices attached to suspects' cars. The cost of aerial surveillance is between £600 and £1,000 an hour.Pubdate: July 25, 1999Copyright of Telegraph Group Limited
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