Flock cameras led to an aggravated battery arrest towards U of I student

CHAMPAIGN, ILL. (WAND) - Flock cameras are already making a difference across Champaign County. After a Danville man tried to pull down the pants of a U of I student near campus.

"The person who did it said it was a prank, but I think if you ask the victim, she wouldn't feel the same way about it. She felt very seriously that she was in danger, that someone was harming her," said Patrick Wade, senior director of strategic communications at the University of Illinois Police Department.

29-year-old, Kasey Hollis, is now charged with aggravated battery. After flock cameras caught him leaving the scene on Sunday August 7th.

"Was able to capture the man in the vehicle that he jumped in to get away. That vehicle license plate was then put into the flock system, and put into specifically the hot list alerts. Which send a real time alert to law enforcement if they detect that vehicle license plate again," said Holly Beilin, spokesperson for Flock Safety.

Shortly days after, the cameras sent an alert to University Police that the driver drove past a plate reader. This led UIPD to Hollis' arrest. The department got the cameras this January, and officers say the technology is already making a big impact in the community.

"Becoming apparent very quickly that this is an extremely valuable investigative tool. What vehicles were coming in and out of an area around the time of a crime. Like this one, and a couple of others I could think about at the top pf my head," said Wade.

With these flock cameras installed in the area, they'll continue to use these cameras for a safer campus community.

"When something does happen, we want to identify those people and hold them accountable. These cameras give us the opportunity to go a little bit farther in doing that," said Wade.

"That these individuals are not able to get away with something that might seem like a prank but could escalate. That's what actually ensures the safety of campuses," said Beilin.