Murfreesboro police are turning to a roaming surveillance camera to fight crime.

“Any type of spike in crime that we notice as being an anomaly, we can take this (the Sky Cop camera) and put it in that area; it will be a visual deterrent and it will be a surveillance asset to us.” said Captain Cary Gensemer of the Murfreesboro Police Department.

The new camera cost the Department $48,0000 and is operated on solar power. This Department plans to move the camera across the city. On Friday and Saturday, the Sky Cop operated in the Northwoods Manor subdivsion.

Since September, that neighborhood has had eight burglaries, two of which – the residents were home at the time of the burglary.

On Sunday, the Department decided to move the camera to the parking lot of the now-closed, Kmart, in Murfreesboro.

Capt. Gensemer said the Department received tips that the group of ATVs in Nashville, were coming to Murfreesboro.

“We didn’t have any incidents but it’s an effective visual deterent.”



Gensemer added that the Sky Cop is so effective not only because of its mobility, but also its ease of operation.

“I can operate the cameras remotely, using a tablet or even my Iphone. I can drive the cameras from anywhere I have an internet connection.”

Neighbors in the Northwoods Manor subdivison shared their thoughts with News 2 on how the new surveillance is being used.

Jeff McMahan, a resident, said,

“Any type of police presence that can be observed by the potential burglars or speeders or those types of things, is great. Plus, the reassurance it gives to residents to know that police are paying attention and do care about the situations they’re having.”

