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How effective are home security cameras and how often do they help police?

Police suggest placing your cameras on the front door of your home or the corners of your house in order to capture proper footage in an emergency.

OREGON, Ohio — Chances are you've seen law enforcement or other safety officials ask for help in identifying someone caught on a security camera when solving a crime. Camera evidence is becoming more helpful for police, especially as technology advances. 

On top of asking for witnesses to a crime, security footage is one of the first things police ask for when solving a crime. 

"It's hard to put a number on how often we use it but it's definitely something if we have it available it's a great tool to have! We'll use our Facebook page quite a bit to post that for our community and it's amazing the amount of people that will say hey, I know that person!" said Sgt. Ryan Kantner with the Oregon Police Department.

Many area departments say cameras can not only identify suspects but also how many people are in a crime and any vehicles that may be associated with those people.

Police suggest placing your cameras on the front door of your home or the corners of your house in order to capture proper footage in an emergency. Make sure you're aware of how your camera works, if it requires a subscription series and if it's properly charged, as that is another issue police run into with cameras. 

Typically even if you don't have a camera, checking with neighbors who do can be helpful.

"You know we'll ask neighbors what security cameras they have available in the area. And like I said we will check down three or four hours down both directions, because a lot of times you can see the person stop and look or stage themselves before they go to a car. And like I said sometimes you can get a better description from that," said Sgt. Kantner. 

As the holiday season approaches and porch pirates will likely appear, police say having any type of extra eyes on your home can be helpful if something ends up happening.

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