FORT MYERS, Fla. — The Fort Myers Police Department (FMPD) is utilizing a new phone app that allows its users to work with police in tracking and solving local crimes. The department is the first public safety agency in Florida to crowdsource digital evidence and crime tips in real-time using Atlas One.“Something like this, it could be valuable information because sometimes you’ll have a string of burglaries in the area,” said Fort Myers Police Public Information Officer Kristin Capuzzi. “It takes all of us to keep this city safe.”According to FMPD, officers hope using the app will ‘further enhance transparency and citizen engagement with the residents they serve.’Once signed up, users will see icons showing where FMPD officers are actively responding to calls in real-time, with icons appearing for 48 hours after a call to allow for people to be able to submit tips.“As you see all the little icons they’re going to all indicate different things going on in the city,” said Officer Capuzzi as she showed how using the app could help in bringing down crime rates.The icons can show a theft, fire, car break-in or even where an officer is called for a welfare check among the many types of calls that come through 9-11 dispatchers. Tips that are submitted are then filtered out to detectives, school resource officers or various police officers in the city.When ABC7 tried using the Atlas One app, it indicated a burglary was reported at Fourth and Evans Avenue in Fort Myers. If a business or someone who lived nearby had security video, they could upload and share that easily within the app to Fort Myers police.If they wake up and see something suspicious they can send us a tip,” said Officer Capuzzi. “You can click on ‘share information’ with Fort Myers Police Department, this allows you to possibly upload Ring video any time a video you may have, photographs.”Similar to how the ABC7 app can use push alerts to let viewers know what’s happening, FMPD can also now send an alert if an area is actively in danger. The Department can isolate where an alert is sent “if a crime occurs within a few blocks , the user will be notified and be given the opportunity to share real-time information directly with FMPD.”Fort Myers Police also plan to use the app to keep residents updated on very important road projects like along First and Second Avenues, where traffic patterns will change from one to two-way traffic.FMPD hopes with using the app, people can also see when they do community engagement events and even apply to work with the department.“This is basically a one stop shop for everything you need to know about the Fort Myers Police Department,” said Capuzzi.Fort Myers residents can see more about the Atlas One app here.
FORT MYERS, Fla. — The Fort Myers Police Department (FMPD) is utilizing a new phone app that allows its users to work with police in tracking and solving local crimes. The department is the first public safety agency in Florida to crowdsource digital evidence and crime tips in real-time using Atlas One.
“Something like this, it could be valuable information because sometimes you’ll have a string of burglaries in the area,” said Fort Myers Police Public Information Officer Kristin Capuzzi. “It takes all of us to keep this city safe.”
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According to FMPD, officers hope using the app will ‘further enhance transparency and citizen engagement with the residents they serve.’
Once signed up, users will see icons showing where FMPD officers are actively responding to calls in real-time, with icons appearing for 48 hours after a call to allow for people to be able to submit tips.
“As you see all the little icons they’re going to all indicate different things going on in the city,” said Officer Capuzzi as she showed how using the app could help in bringing down crime rates.
The icons can show a theft, fire, car break-in or even where an officer is called for a welfare check among the many types of calls that come through 9-11 dispatchers. Tips that are submitted are then filtered out to detectives, school resource officers or various police officers in the city.
When ABC7 tried using the Atlas One app, it indicated a burglary was reported at Fourth and Evans Avenue in Fort Myers. If a business or someone who lived nearby had security video, they could upload and share that easily within the app to Fort Myers police.
If they wake up and see something suspicious they can send us a tip,” said Officer Capuzzi. “You can click on ‘share information’ with Fort Myers Police Department, this allows you to possibly upload Ring video any time a video you may have, photographs.”
Similar to how the ABC7 app can use push alerts to let viewers know what’s happening, FMPD can also now send an alert if an area is actively in danger. The Department can isolate where an alert is sent “if a crime occurs within a few blocks [of a users registered home or location], the user will be notified and be given the opportunity to share real-time information directly with FMPD.”
Fort Myers Police also plan to use the app to keep residents updated on very important road projects like along First and Second Avenues, where traffic patterns will change from one to two-way traffic.
FMPD hopes with using the app, people can also see when they do community engagement events and even apply to work with the department.
“This is basically a one stop shop for everything you need to know about the Fort Myers Police Department,” said Capuzzi.
Fort Myers residents can see more about the Atlas One app here.
