POLICE Logo
MenuMENU
SearchSEARCH

New Jersey Agency Implements Genetec ALPR Solution to Speed Up Investigations

The Fort Lee Police Department looked to minimize that investigative time to find suspects and close cases faster with better access to vehicle information.

by Staff
January 8, 2024

Genetec Inc. , a leading technology provider of unified security, public safety, operations, and business intelligence solutions, recently announced that the Fort Lee (New Jersey) Police Department) has modernized its automatic license plate recognition technology (ALPR) with Genetec AutoVu Cloudrunner  vehicle-centric investigative system.

The Borough of Fort Lee is connected to Manhattan via the George Washington Bridge. Its proximity to New York City brings traffic congestion and some transient crime to the area. Its legacy ALPR system generated just a list of plates and vehicles, and teams would then manually sort and narrow the data to find the vehicle in question. The Fort Lee PD looked to minimize that investigative time to find suspects and close cases faster with better access to vehicle information.

Ad Loading...

Fort Lee decided to acquire the Genetec AutoVu Cloudrunner, a solar powered, subscription-based, turnkey solution that uses vehicle characteristics combined with ALPR to enhance police departments’ ability to solve crimes. Its sensors deliver accurate reads day and night, in any kind of weather, the company says.

“AutoVu Cloudrunner has incredible edge-based intelligence and search capabilities,” said Lt. Thomas Porto. “When we’re looking for a vehicle the search is wicked fast, and being able to narrow down searches by make, model, color and time frame helps us speed up our investigation.”

Porto shared a recent case where the Fort Lee PD received a 911 call late at night from a housing facility who observed suspicious individuals in a vehicle on the property. After deploying the AutoVu Cloudrunner camera in the area, officers were able to use the time frame, location, and vehicle description to match the license plate info, which identified it as stolen. When the suspects abandoned the vehicle at a nearby school with which the police had federated video, they were able to use the Genetec  Omnicast video management system  to see where the suspects had gone, quickly apprehending them safely.

The AutoVu Cloudrunner solution is solar powered and plug-and-play complete, making it easy for the Fort Lee PD to deploy, Porto said. “We mounted the cameras, worked with Genetec for a few minutes and were off to the races,” he adds.

The audit features of AutoVu Cloudrunner also help cut down investigative time and resources. When officers start a search, for example, they only need to enter the case number once, and all subsequent searches in that query will be tied to that case number and logged in audit trails for compliance. “This is such a game-changer,” said Porto. “With our previous system, we’d need to re-enter the case number and other information for every single search. That was cumbersome and slowed our investigative work. AutoVu Cloudrunner eliminates all of that.”

You can read a longer Q&A with Fort Lee Police Lieutenant Thomas Porto  here .

About Genetec

Genetec Inc. is a 25-year-old global technology company that develops solutions designed to improve security, intelligence, and operations for enterprises, governments, and communities. Its flagship product, Security Center, is an open-architecture platform that unifies IP-based video surveillance, access control, automatic license plate recognition (ALPR), communications, and analytics. Founded in 1997, and headquartered in Montreal, Canada, Genetec serves its customers via an extensive network of certified channel partners and consultants in over 159 countries.


 

Ad Loading...

More Investigations

patrolfinder - reducing crime thumbnail
SponsoredOctober 27, 2025

How One Police Department Cut Crime by 46% with Smarter Patrol Management

Discover how one police department cut crime nearly in half using smarter patrol data. This whitepaper breaks down the real-world strategy behind a 46% drop in vehicle thefts, improved officer safety, and stronger community visibility.

Read More →
Police graphic showing surveillance photos of suspect arrest in shooting case
Patrolby Wayne ParhamSeptember 12, 2025

Suspect Arrested in Charlie Kirk Assassination

Authorities arrested a 22-year-old Utah man for the killing of Charlie Kirk just 33 hours after the assassination in what FBI Director Kash Patel called a historic time period. “This is what happens when you let good cops be cops,” Patel said.

Read More →
Three surveillance photos of a person wearing dark clothing and cap in different settings
Patrolby Wayne ParhamSeptember 12, 2025

More Than 7,000 Tips Provided to Kirk Assassination Investigation

More than 7,000 tips were provided to the investigation by the day after the assassination of Charlie Kirk on a Utah college campus on Wednesday. The FBI has not received that much help from the public since the Boston Marathon bombings.

Read More →
Ad Loading...
Law enforcement officers near chain-link fence with red truck in residential neighborhood
Patrolby Wayne ParhamSeptember 8, 2025

Idaho AG Will Not Pursue Charges Against 4 Officers Who Fatally Shot Nonverbal Autistic Teen Armed with a Knife

The Idaho Office of the Attorney General has concluded its investigation into the fatal officer-involved shooting that killed a 17-year-old teen who was armed with a knife. Officers did not know the teen suffered from developmental delays, autism, and other conditions.

Read More →
Police officer working with dog on concrete construction site
Investigationsby Heidi SieversAugust 22, 2025

The Role of Forensics in Disaster Victim Identification

Heidi Sievers, of Columbia Southern University, explains disaster victim identification and how scientific work bridges critical gaps when visual recognition, one of the least reliable methods of identification, is rendered impossible by the conditions of the disaster.

Read More →
Smiling professional woman in beige blazer standing in front of American flag
InvestigationsJuly 22, 2025

Crimes Against Children Detective Named June 2025 Officer of the Month by NLEOMF

The case began in March and culminated with multiple search warrants and arrests on June 10, 2025. This case ran between Virginia and New York with multiple victims throughout the United States.

Read More →
Ad Loading...
U.S. Customs and Border Protection entrance with official agency doors and welcome mat
PatrolJuly 8, 2025

2 Officers Injured in Attack at Texas Border Patrol Station

A McAllen Police officer was shot in the leg during the attack. A Border Patrol officer and a non-sworn employee were injured, according to a Department of Homeland Security.

Read More →
InvestigationsMay 30, 2025

Multi-State Law Enforcement Operation Rescues 70 Human Trafficking Victims

The operation involved the execution of 25 search warrants and disrupted business at 26 “illicit massage businesses,” the Human Trafficking Training Center reports.

Read More →
PatrolMay 30, 2025

2 Ohio Officers Shot During Traffic Stop, Suspect at Large

According to the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, the suspect has been charged with one count of attempted murder and two counts of felonious assault.

Read More →
Ad Loading...
InvestigationsMay 9, 2025

DOJ Rescues 115 Sexually Exploited Children, Arrests 205 Offenders

“The Department of Justice will never stop fighting to protect victims — especially child victims — and we will not rest until we hunt down, arrest, and prosecute every child predator...,” Attorney General Pamela Bondi.

Read More →