Special SmartWater-equipped 'capture cars' are giving Nottingham's car criminals a reason to think twice.
The unmarked police vehicles are fitted with hidden audio and video recording equipment, as well as SmartWater's uniquely-coded forensic spray systems, and left on the city's streets.
Anyone attempting to steal the vehicles, or steal from them, is captured by the recording technology and sprayed with colourless SmartWater which places them firmly at the scene of the crime.
A number of 'capture cars' have been parked throughout Nottingham and already one man has been jailed and a second man charged after breaking into the cars.
Zulquerian Ali, 30, of Alfreton Road, Nottingham, was sent to prison for 160 days by Nottingham magistrates after he appeared before them on May 19 and admitted breaking into one of the cars and stealing items from inside it.
Once someone has been sprayed with SmartWater it is almost impossible to fully remove. Each use of the liquid has a unique chemical code and shows up under ultra-violet lamps used by most police forces, allowing officers to quickly check for its presence on skin, clothes, tools and any other items.
SmartWater chief executive, Phil Cleary, said: “Criminals know the dangers of encountering SmartWater, so as well as capturing those who actually break into the police capture cars, it is important for them to know that this is happening and that car crime in Nottingham puts them at serious risk of being caught and convicted. It's part of the overall risk management approach that has proved to produce effective results time and again.”
SmartWater has been used in more than 1,000 convictions across the UK and has an impressive 100 per cent success rate when used as evidence in court.