KUALA LUMPUR: The police are expected to receive 7,648 body-worn camera (BWC) units in stages from September this year until February 2025.
Bukit Aman Crime Prevention and Community Safety Department (JPJKK) director Datuk Wan Hassan Wan Ahmad said the BWC will be used by the Mobile Patrol Vehicle (MPV) and Motorcycle Patrol Unit (URB) and will be expanded to the Traffic Investigation and Enforcement Department (JSPT).
"The BWCs will be placed in 157 district police headquarters (IPD) and 640 police stations throughout the contingent and its use will be in phases from October.
"Currently, we expect the BWC to be fully used by MPV and URB officers in March next year.
"In order to ensure that all MPV and URB personnel are proficient in operating the BWC, training will be carried out from Marchto December next year," he told Berita Harian today.
Wan Hassan said the police will be the country's sole public security agency in the use of the latest technology, in line with modern policing.
"In line with the development of technology and increasingly challenging policing assignments, it is our hope that the use of BWC will be able to improve good governance in the assignment of crime prevention patrols among MPV and URB officers.
"With BWC embedded in police uniforms, it will further improve the relationship and cooperation between the public and the police because every conversation they have is recorded," he said.
He said, the use of BWC will further enhance the image of the police in the community because the footage can be used as evidence in court and in any criminal case, including cases involving officers being defamed while enforcing the law.
Yesterday, three traffic policemen from Ipoh were arrested for allegedly soliciting RM100 from a famous YouTube couple from the United Kingdom.
On Sunday, Chris and Marianne Fisher from Shropshire posted on their YouTube channel that they were stopped by traffic police who solicited RM100 from them.
The 51-second video clip, courtesy of an onboard camera, showed the couple stopping their van by the roadside before a traffic policeman appeared at the front driver's window.