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The Suffolk County Seventh Precinct now has access to five security cameras at strategic locations throughout Mastic Beach known to have a high volume of pedestrian and vehicular traffic, officials said.
Footage from the cameras can be used as evidence in criminal cases and are also meant to serve as a deterrent, said Insp. Gerard Hardy, the Seventh Precinct’s commanding officer.
“If there is a car accident or a burglary … at a particular location, we could see cars leaving the scene” and get information such as license plate data to follow up on, Hardy said, adding that the cameras are monitored regularly.
“This is another tool that our police officers will be able to utilize to help them fight crime and make our community a safer place to live,” said Suffolk Legis. Rudy Sunderman, whose office worked to provide camera access to the police department.
The cameras were originally acquired by the now-defunct Village of Mastic Beach and were used for security purposes. The cameras became the Town of Brookhaven’s assets when the village dissolved.
The cameras are on telephone poles throughout the community. Hardy said it’s the police department’s policy not to release their locations, but he reiterated that they are visible and that people in the community are familiar with them.
Councilman Dan Panico, who sponsored the resolution transferring the cameras to the county, commended Sunderman and everyone involved for getting them connected.
