New technology helping Howell County, Mo., authorities find rightful owners of stolen property
WEST PLAINS, Mo. (KY3) — A new tool is helping a local sheriff’s office reunite stolen property with its owners. The tool is a partnership between the Howell County Sheriff’s Office and ProtechDNA.
For years, ProtechDNA has been working with law enforcement agencies across the country, helping victims of stolen property track down their items.
“One of the biggest issues that we have found was people that get their property stolen, a lot of it is recovered, and law enforcement just doesn’t know who it belongs to,” ProtechDNA President Shawn Andreas explained.
In Howell County, that statement rings true.
“A lot of times, owners and their properties aren’t generally linked back up,” Sheriff Brent Campbell said.
ProtechDNA’s program “DNA for Property” supplies those who order a kit with a gel containing microscopic dots and stickers for items. Once a property owner receives a kit, they will place the gel or sticker on their property and disclose that information in the ProtechDNA app. If law enforcement ever recovers an item with the gel or sticker on it, they’ll be able to reunite it with the owner.
No matter the size of the item, it likely can be protected.
“All the way down to a piece of jewelry, to a tailgate on your truck, to a chainsaw or weed-eater,” Sheriff Campbell explained.
ProtectDNA has been working with law enforcement agencies for 11 years and said it’s growing by the month.
“We have over 10,000 law enforcement agencies in our network,” Andreas stated.
The sheriff said this is just another tool in an investigator’s toolbelt to find the rightful owner of the stolen property.
“We’re just trying to do everything we can to mitigate, and if it does occur, reunite the owner to their property,” the sheriff added.
The county is utilizing ProtechDNA’s technology at no cost.
More information on the DNA for Property program can be found on ProtechDNA’s website.
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