There's a relatively new weapon for the good guys when it comes to battling bank robbers. Small electronic tracking devices placed inside packs of money or money bags help cops find the robbers relatively easily.
That was the case today in Ladue. Ladue Police Chief, Rich Wooten told me the Heartland Bank recently signed up for the service (from a company he said he could not name for us) in which the company works in concert with banks and local police.
Wooten says he thinks it's a great deterrent. Robbers have no idea which banks have them and which ones don't. And those who take the risk find themselves taking a ride in the back of a police car soon after when this technology is in play.
According to the Center for Problem-Oriented Policing, the tracking devices use low voltage microchips with transponders. They're so slim, they can be fit in packeds of money. They emit an electronic signal police can track from the air and ground but according to Chief Wooten, the suspect can't be too far away from the cops.
In today's case, "We had about a 15-minute window or so where we didn't have a unit on the ground close enough to get a track on it, but as soon as that air unit got up it was able to track it down east of us into the city of St. Louis," said Wooten.
He told me he wishes all banks were using this technology. There wouldn't be many unsolved cases if that happens.
