Robbers Take Advantage of Covid-19 Masks - Super Recognisers to the Rescue!→

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Another reason for law enforcement agencies to recruit and use human Super Recognisers, who can often identify suspects just from their eyes: Only a few months ago it would have been highly suspicious to enter a bank or a store wearing a mask - now it is part of everyday life AND criminals are taking advantage of this situation, as this US articles highlights. BUT there is a solution, a recently selected City of London Police detective identified a surgical mask wearing burglar. He has now been convicted and banned from entering the City area.

https://qz.com/1837529/thieves-are-capitalizing-on-the-publics-use-of-covid-19-masks/

Thames Valley Police expand the use of Super Recognisers

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Thames Valley Police cover the English counties of Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Berkshire. The latest edition of “Thamesview”, the Force magazine, features an article on the use of Super Recognisers. Detective Inspector Steve Jones of the Serious & Organised Crime Unit is keen to use Super Recognisers and has already sent a number of his officers onto the Super Recognisers International course. Steve said; “We have been working with the Joint Operations Unit and Force Intelligence Bureau in TVP to increase the use of Super Recognisers in areas such as public order. We’re also keen to develop a central team in the intelligence function to review images of unidentified offenders across the force area in an effort to identify them and bring them to justice”. He continued; “There are also plans to work with Counter Terrorism Policing to identify subjects who may be involved in terrorist activity. Over and above this, there are opportunities to work in the digital arena, such as identifying victims whose images have been shared online.”

The Association is always willing to assist law enforcement agencies.

West Midlands Police Super Recogniser Nominated for Award→

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A REDDITCH police officer (AND member of the Association of Super Recognisers) who spotted a record 406 wanted suspects in one year has been named as a finalist in the Amplifon Awards For Brave Britons 2020.

Community support officer Andy Pope, aged 42, hailed the ‘memory man’ by his colleagues, has reached the final four of the Against All Odds category in global hearing specialist Amplifon’s search for ‘The Best Of British’.

The officer, who serves with the West Midlands force, has recognised just over 2,000 suspects since 2012, including 17 in just one day.

See the link for the full article. We wish Andy the best of luck and hope that he wins the award.

US Podcast - Interview of Super Recognizer Kelly Hearsey→

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Kelly tells her story to Crawlspace.

The Podcast notes that in this episode Tim Pilleri and Lance Reenstierna speak with super recognizer Kelly Hearsey. The hosts make the point that Kelly “is basically a modern day superhero who uses her power for good”. If you think you have this skill, why not listen to Kelly’s journey from photographer to super recognizer (or recogniser if you are in UK!).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTdnxgoU4Y4&feature=youtu.be

Super Recognisers & The Grenfell Tower Fraudster→

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Mike Neville, the CEO of the Association features on this episode of “Faking It: Tears of a Conman”, which tells the story of Anh Nhu Nguyen, who claimed that he had lost his home and his family as a result of the Grenfell Fire disaster, which occurred in London in 2017. His story was a fiction and Nguyen, a serial fraudster, was convicted of obtaining £12000 by the deception and jailed for 21 months. Super Recogniser skills played an integral part in convicting seventeen fraudsters for similar offences.

https://www.dplay.co.uk/show/faking-it-tears-of-a-crime/video/the-grenfell-conman/EHD_318718B

Super Recogniser Success in Stuttgart!→

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A suspect involved in rioting in Stuttgart was identified by a German Police Super Recogniser. The article below has been translated into English. Congratulations to the Stuttgart Police on embracing this new law enforcement tactic!

More arrest warrants after the night of the riots

Stuttgart - And again the handcuffs click: Three other alleged participants in the Stuttgart Randalenacht on June 21 have been sent into custody by a judge. They are three 18-year-olds. The Eckensee Investigation Group has thus identified more than 80 suspects. In just over half of the cases, the Public Prosecutor's Office has obtained an arrest warrant, a good part of which has since been suspended.

One was recognised by a so-called Super Recogniser on Thursday night. The officer with a trained memory saw the 18-year-old, who is known to the police and who was already being searched, by chance at the main station. The official was there privately. The homeless man is said to have smashed a shop window and threw a bottle at it.

Many suspects - but one is still missing

On 3 September, another 18-year-old went online. He, too, is said to have been involved in the riots and looting. He was wanted on a warrant for allegedly damaging shop windows and throwing a bottle. A judge sent him into custody. On 4 September, police arrested an 18-year-old from the district of Biberach. He is accused of looting goods and damaging a patrol car in a shop. He, too, is now behind bars.

Investigations are continuing against those involved in the looting. However, one suspect is still missing from the list: the attacker who attacked a police officer with a kickboxer kick is still unknown.

Super Recognisers & Masked Suspects→

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We live in a world where people can now go into banks and businesses wearing a mask - unthinkable a few months ago. Criminals can take advantage of the current virus crisis and use masks, not to control Covid 19, but to conceal their identity. Two reports show how human Super Recognisers can assist law enforcement agencies to identify those who commit crime with most of their face concealed.

Research by Prof Josh Davis of Greenwich University demonstrated that masked suspects can be identified by human Super Recognisers, see:

https://ef7ac492-0255-46b7-9653-75e8356be6c1.filesusr.com/ugd/9bb3fa_ea526c72142d4c5f8523167ec306cf11.pdf?index=true

Meanwhile, the US National Institute for Standards & Technology (NIST) notes that “Algorithms created before the pandemic generally perform less accurately with digitally masked faces.” People, in the form of Super Recognisers, are the solution.

https://www.nist.gov/news-events/news/2020/07/nist-launches-studies-masks-effect-face-recognition-software

Super Recogniser Interviewed on Australian Television→

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See Kelly Hearsey, the COO of Super Recognisers International Ltd, being interviewed by the hosts of the breakfast TV show on Channel 10 in Australia. Kelly describes how she discovered her skills and became an operational Super Recogniser, working with the police, the security industry and the media to fight crime and identify persons of interest. The TV hosts also test their facial recognition abilities. You too could take this path, if you are a Super Recogniser!

US Podcast on Super Recognizers - Part 2→

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Dr David Robertson and Prof Josh Davis speak about the benefits of human Super Recognisers (or Recognizers if you are in the USA!) and how they can make automated facial recognition software more effective AND more ethical, in accordance with civil liberties. As Prof Davis states, using Super Recognisers is just “good, old-fashioned policing” - the public expect police officers to identify criminals.

https://www.superrecognisers.com/post/videocasts-with-us-department-of-homeland-defense-security-information-analysis-center