Albany County Sheriff's investigator arrested for 4,000+ unauthorised plate searches
A senior investigator at the Albany County Sheriff's Office faces charges after allegedly tracking five people via a licence plate system over 4,000 times.
Albany County investigator charged over mass unauthorised surveillance of private vehicles
A senior investigator at the Albany County Sheriff's Office has been arrested on charges of official misconduct and falsifying business records after allegedly conducting more than 4,000 unauthorised searches through the Flock licence plate reader system, cbs6albany.com reports.
Laurie Moore, 47, a 13-year veteran of the department, allegedly used the Flock camera network to track five people known to her personally. Approximately 3,000 of those searches targeted a former girlfriend's vehicle; four additional licence plates were each queried hundreds of times.
Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple said an outside source triggered the investigation on Friday, leading to Moore's arrest the following Wednesday. Apple indicated Moore's access to the Flock system dated to roughly the end of 2024.
A second command staff member was placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of a separate internal investigation. Apple said, however, that no other agency members appear to have engaged in unauthorised vehicle tracking.
Albany County District Attorney Lee Kindlon noted the broader controversy around Flock cameras, which CBS6 previously reported have faced scrutiny in Troy, Kinderhook and Saratoga Springs. Both Kindlon and Apple nonetheless maintained that the technology serves a legitimate role in solving crimes.
In response to the incident, the Sheriff's Office has tightened access controls on Flock data. "Now it's only a supervisor. It undergoes an audit process with Internal Affairs, which is reviewed every 30 days. That has to be kicked up to an undersheriff or chief," Apple said.
Moore faces two misdemeanour charges and has been suspended indefinitely pending further administrative action. She is due to appear in New Scotland Town Court at 5 p.m. on 24 September.
Source: Google News MT — Crime (en)