Tesla Sentry Mode has the ability to capture any event that takes place near a vehicle on one of the vehicle’s external cameras.
Routinely used by owners to help solve everything from vandalism cases to finding fugitives on the run for months, Sentry Mode is now being used and employed by the Oakland, California, Police Department.
The first instance of the Oakland PD utilizing civilian recordings of Sentry Mode was in a hotel parking lot, according to the San Francisco Chronicle, which reported that officers tried to take a tourist’s vehicle after it might have recorded a homicide.
Police officers in the city are now hoping that Teslas are nearby the scene of a crime in hopes of locking more suspects up. They’re going as far as to obtain warrants to tow the vehicles to ensure the videos recorded, which could have captured a crime on camera, are not lost.
Sergeant Ben Therriault, president of the Richmond Police Officers Association, said:
“We have all these mobile video devices floating around.”
This is, of course, in reference to the Teslas that are parked on streets, in lots, and in driveways, and are constantly monitoring their surroundings. For years, we have reported on instances of Tesla Sentry Mode and how it has gone under the radar of criminals.
We still can’t believe people choose to perform illegal activities around Teslas, as Sentry Mode has been a highly publicized feature for over five years.
Tesla Sentry Mode again confirms burglars have no idea that cars can record them
Now, it has gotten to the point that it is even helping non-owners solve crimes, and it is a testament to how the vehicles are truly changing the landscape of not only vehicle ownership but now surveillance and law enforcement.
Kevin Godchaux was the officer in the tourist’s case in Oakland, and he wrote in an affidavit obtained by the Chronicle:
“I know that Tesla vehicles contain external surveillance cameras in order to protect their drivers from theft and/or liability in accidents. Based on this information, I respectfully request that a warrant is authorized to seize this vehicle from the La Quinta Inn parking lot so this vehicle’s surveillance footage may be searched via an additional search warrant at a secure location.”
Sentry Mode has already assisted in the arrest of several people that were suspects in the murder of a 27-year-old woman.
A Model X was parked in Oakland at a beauty supply shop when five people started firing at each other. The woman was killed, the Model X’s Sentry Mode footage was obtained, and two men were charged with murder just two weeks later, all because of the “high-definition quality surveillance footage” the vehicle captured.
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