The Marion County (Ind.) Sheriff’s Office, Wynyard Group, and CI Technologies have announced that the Felony Lane Gang Working Group, comprising 92 law enforcement agencies and other organizations, will use Wynyard Advanced Crime Analytics and CrimeNtel from CI Technologies to help fight the notorious Felony Lane Gang, a group that steals victims’ purses, checkbooks, and identity cards by smashing car windows and then forges checks on the victims’ accounts.

The working group will use Wynyard Group and CI Technologies software to strengthen the ongoing investigation into the coordinated group of over 100 thieves that has been operating across the United States for more than five years and is responsible for stealing tens of millions of dollars in at least 34 states.

The Marion County SO is responsible for collecting and analyzing intelligence data from the agencies involved in the investigation. The combination of CrimeNtel’s data warehousing system and Wynyard Advanced Crime Analytics will allow crime analysts across the country to input and access data and discover relationships, insights, patterns, anomalies and timelines that can be used to identify and prosecute suspects successfully.

Wynyard Advanced Crime Analytics will let investigators and analysts perform link analysis, mapping, visualization and other techniques to discover relationships between suspects and gain often unexpected insights that can aid investigators to solve crimes faster and more efficiently.

“We believe this new combination of technology from Wynyard and CI Technologies will be a major advantage for our analysts and will help us move faster and work smarter in a variety of ways,” said Jeff Hammer, an intelligence analyst with the Marion County SO. “This gang continues to spread quickly, but putting crime solving analytics in the hands of investigators and intelligence analysts will help keep us ahead of these criminals.”

The Felony Lane Gang acquired its name based on the gang’s habit of using the furthest lane from video cameras and tellers of drive-through bank branches to cash stolen checks of up to $2,000. Using checkbooks and ID cards stolen from vehicles, the gang employs or coerces local recruits who resemble the victims to conduct the fraud. The thieves often used wigs in order to look more like their victims. The gang’s success with this technique has seen them grow and spread into at least 34 states, even after a number of gang members have been convicted and imprisoned. 

The losses are not confined just to the theft victims and their banks. Rental car companies and insurers have suffered losses as well, since the gang often uses rental cars which are then abandoned. 

The Felony Lane Gang Working Group is made up of 92 organizations, including state, city and county law enforcement agencies as well as regional groups, selected federal agencies and financial institutions.

Wynyard Group is a market leader in risk management and crime fighting software used in investigations and intelligence operations by government agencies and financial organizations. Wynyard solutions help solve and prevent crime, defend against advanced persistent cyber threats and counter terrorism. Wynyard’s software platform combines big data, advanced crime analytics and tradecraft to identify persons of interest, stop offenders and protect victims. 

Wynyard has more than 100,000 users of its solutions and offices in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, United Arab Emirates, Australia and New Zealand. For more information visit www.wynyardgroup.com