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One of the hardest crimes to solve may have gotten a tad easier thanks to a new partnership in Plymouth, Minnesota.

The police department has partnered with Ring doorbell service, the technology many homeowners use that allows them to see what goes on at their front door.

There are about 150 residential burglaries a year in Plymouth, and it can be hard to find the culprit. However, video can certainly help.

“This is extremely valuable in just that it speeds up the time that we’re able to communicate with people,” said Deputy Chief Erik Fadden with Plymouth Police.

On the app, no one is identified by name or address, so police do not know who shares video. But, if a crime occurred, detectives might now ask if anyone has video they’d like to share, which they can do with police in a private portal.


“We would be able to send a message to people within that certain area that are Ring owners through the app, basically letting them know that we are investigating an incident that took place on a certain date and time, and if they had any video they would be willing to share with us, this app provides a portal for them to share those videos with us,” Fadden said.

For those with privacy concerns, sharing video is completely voluntary. Police do not know who has a Ring or who doesn’t. Rather, police say the partnership simply streamlines communication.

“Just the amount of time that it takes and the amount of effort to speak with that many different people, it cuts it tremendously, so it’s a big win for all of us, I would think,” he said.

Currently, there are 400 departments nationwide that have signed up for the Ring partnerships. In Minnesota, it's Plymouth and Rochester. It is worth noting there are other video doorbell services out there, and this partnership is just for Ring.