This document summarizes a new property registration database called Propertycop that allows the public to register valuables online in case they are stolen. It will then give police access to check if any suspicious property they encounter has been reported stolen. The database is seen as a useful tool as currently police only have records of reported stolen items, but no way to identify unreported stolen goods. It is hoped Propertycop can help return more stolen goods to their rightful owners and make police work on identifying stolen property much faster and more effective.

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At present, police only have a data-
base of reported stolen property and
this does officers no good when they
stop someone they suspect of having
just committed a robbery, said Brier-
ley.
“I’ve been driving along and caught
someone trying to sell cameras to a
tourist. Unfortunately I didn’t have the
resources to identify the property as
stolen and get it back to its rightful
owner,” said Brierley.
There were “countless times” he’d
stopped someone he felt was holding
stolen property but had been unable to
identify it as such, he said.
This has been a great frustration for
many officers who come across per-
sons in possession of bicycles, laptop
computers, cameras or other goods
they believe were stolen, but are pow-
erless to prove it, he said.
“We want to be able to return these
goods to their rightful owners,” said
Brierley, who is a neighbourhood
police officer in Vancouver’s West End.
He said police officers throughout
the province will have computer
access to the Propertycop system. Offi-
cers on the street in the Lower Main-
land and Vancouver Island will be able
to phone a call centre operated by
Intercon Security and provide the ser-
ial number or description of a suspect-
ed stolen item to see if had been regis-
tered.
“When the bad guy gets into your
home and steals something his first
priority is to get it out on the street and
sell it. That’s the crucial time for patrol
officers. Officers need access to a data-
base that will quickly tell them who is
the rightful owner,” he said.
“The key to the program is registra-
tion and recovery,” he said.
Brierley said it should only take
about 15 seconds for an officer to have
an item identified using Propertycop.
Propertycop, however, is not a
police database, he said.
“It’s a private database that the reg-
istrants give permission to the police
to access,” he said.
Individuals who want to register
their possessions should go to the site,
create an account and post details of
their possessions, including pictures,
he said.
Brierley said no one will be asked for
an address, just a name and a phone
number or driver’s licence number.
Privacy was a major concern for the
program designers, said Brierley, and
the system has secure protection that
will prevent any unauthorized access
to the data bank.
He said Propertycop can be used by
companies as an asset management
system and as a way for people to ver-
ify insurance claims.
Brierley said the system will run for
a six-month trial period using Intercon
Security’s call centre. He said Bell
Mobility is providing wireless services
and the Salvation Army is providing
office space.
Salvation Army official John Pavey
said the program will enable the poor
to register their bicycles.
“Many of our clientele are poor and
bikes are very valuable as they are their
only means of transportation,” said
Pavey.
gbellett@png.canwest.com
Current system
frustrating for
police on the beat
IAN SMITH/VANCOUVER SUN
A new non-profit website called Propertycop has been created by David
Brierley. The public can register their property and police can check the
website and see if any property they come across is stolen.
From A1
The web site for propertycop.org, a free database that allows people to list
valuables in the event they are stolen.
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