The eye in the sky, better known as Montgomery County Police Department’s Raven One, has had a busy couple of months. Introduced in November in the Drone as First Responder program, Raven 1 has responded to 159 calls in downtown Silver Spring, according to a press release.
Raven 1 was first on location for 76% of a total of 121 calls. The average response time for the drone is less than a minute and 30 seconds. It located 27 suspects/subjects. It also proved a time saver for patrol officers who didn’t have to respond to 22 calls. And it allowed 40 officers to go back into service and be redirected.
On Nov. 30, Raven 1 helped apprehend two men who robbed a Safeway Store in the 900 black of Thayer Avenue. The drone captured the men fleeing the scene and followed them until they were arrested in person by an on-duty police officer.
Here’s the bird’s eye view of the attempted escape as seen by Raven 1.
The two suspects, 26-year-old Brandon Mark and 40-year-old Joseph Paul Lee were taken into custody. Both men were from Washington, DC. They were charged with theft and obstructing and hindering. Mark was held without bond due to an outstanding warrant in DC. Lee put up a $100 unsecured personal bond and was released.
For more information on Raven 1 click here.
