Central Ohio Law Enforcement Agencies Implement New Crime-Fighting Technology To Improve Cross-Jurisdictional Communication.

Business Editors

COLUMBUS, Ohio--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 9, 2003

New Intra-Agency Information Sharing System Improves Ability to

Identify Subjects and Solve Cases Faster and More Efficiently

Seven central Ohio law enforcement agencies recently joined forces to implement new crime-fighting technology that will revolutionize the way their police departments enter, access and share information across jurisdictional lines.

Each agency in the consortium has implemented the web-based mobile crime-fighting information system from Armada Group, Inc. that enables officers in the field to identify subjects, issue missing person alerts and wanted notifications, and enhance field interview reports with photos and fingerprints. With increasing populations, hazier jurisdictional lines, and increasing emphasis on homeland security and fighting terrorism, the agency consortium realized that they needed to dramatically enhance communication internally and with neighboring agencies.

The central Ohio agencies participating in the consortium project include Dublin, Grandview Heights, The Ohio State University, Powell, Westerville, Worthington and Upper Arlington.

"The equation of success for central Ohio law enforcement is simple," said Michael Clancey, Chief of the Westerville, Ohio Police Department. "Effective technology plus timely information equals officer safety. This real-time informational exchange between agencies also translates into safer communities in central Ohio."

The technology behind the project is iLincs, developed by Columbus, Ohio-based Armada. iLincs is a Web-based, crime-fighting technology solution that allows officers to easily capture, access and share both visual and text-based information on a suspect or incident. It can be used with existing in-cruiser and in-station PC-based systems and with other mobile technology such as a cell phone or PDA. iLincs also provides officers fast access to local, state, and national data repositories.

"The aftermath of September 11 and increasing crime rates have placed a greater priority on breaking down the information silos that exist among law enforcement agencies," said Keith Singleton, founder and chief executive officer of Armada. "Unfortunately, many agencies do not have the resources in place to build, replace or add technologies to bridge the data sharing gap between local, state and federal agencies."

Singleton, who is a former police officer, said this type of in-field technology is a first for central Ohio.

"These agencies have always set an example on how neighboring agencies should collaborate and share information," Singleton continued. "With iLincs, they now have access to a powerful tool that enhances their communication initiatives giving them more time and resources to fight crime."

Project funding for six of the agencies, excluding Ohio State University Police Department, was made possible through grants administered by the Ohio Office of Criminal Justice Services and funded by the U.S. Department of Justice. Realizing the value the project would bring to the University community, the OSU police department used their own funding to participate in the consortium.

According to Detective Rick Amweg of the OSU Police Department, increasing information sharing with neighboring police agencies such as Upper Arlington and Grandview Heights helps the university and is critical in solving campus crime.

"The University has several officers on foot or bicycles who require or need to enter critical information, but are not close to the station," Amweg continued. "This project will enable us to put state-of-the-art mobile technology in the hands of every officer so they can enter, access and share real-time information from the field - helping us to become more efficient, improve officer safety and resolve cases faster."

About Armada Group, Inc.

Based in Columbus, Ohio, Armada provides affordable law enforcement information technology through iLincs, a secure Web-based information and collaboration system that improves the safety and effectiveness of front-line officers. A 15-year police veteran and a creator of the nationally recognized Columbus, Ohio Division of Police mobile data initiative founded the company. Armada makes it possible for every agency to automate and enhance field information collection and storage, suspect identification, and intra and inter-agency communication. For more information access www.armadacentral.com or call 1-877-SAFECOP (3267).

EDITOR'S NOTE: Screenshots and photos of officers using the technology are available for this story upon request.