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Springdale : Council approves pawn list database
BY RICHARD MASSEY Posted on Wednesday, February 28, 2007
SPRINGDALE — The City Council unanimously approved an ordinance Tuesday night that requires Springdale pawnbrokers to list their daily transactions with an online theft recovery system. The Springdale Police Department has designated the Law Enforcement Automated Database Search Online, or LeadsOnline, as its clearinghouse for pawnshop records. The national company markets a Web-based database system to police that tracks items sold at pawn shops. Police Chief Kathy O’Kelley told the City Council she expects the transition from a receipt-based system to an electronic system to be swift and smooth. “We’ve already met with the pawnshop owners,” O’Kelley said. “No one was opposed to it.” Under the new Springdale ordinance, pawnshops have up to six months to register with the database. The subscription will cost Springdale $ 4, 300. The system’s software is free to participating businesses. About $ 60, 000 in jewelry, office equipment, electronics and firearms was reported stolen in the city last month, O’Kelley said. Using the database, pawnbrokers can report their daily transactions, and the information is available to all police agencies that subscribe to the service. Investigators can cross-reference descriptions of stolen items from Springdale with merchandise listed in the database from states such as Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas, among others. Fayetteville, Benton County, Jonesboro, Little Rock and other Arkansas entities use the system, which was founded in Dallas. Fort Smith registered with the database in June. LeadsOnline was so successful that the city renewed its subscription. “It’s working great,” said Fort Smith police Sgt. Jarrard Copeland. “In the first six months we solved around 75 cases using that system.” Using LeadsOnline, Fort Smith police traced stolen items pawned in Muskogee, Okla., and arrested three suspects. LeadsOnline reports on its Web site that the system was used in October to recover a $ 25, 000 violin stolen and pawned in Arlington, Texas. The USAPATRIOT Act requires pawnshops to file information on all pawned weapons. Arkansas Code Annotated 12-12-103 requires pawnshops to make transactions available to state and local law enforcement. Big Brother’s Pawn, which has stores in Springdale and Rogers, already uses the system at its Bentonville location. “It’s so much more effective than the old system,” said general manager Mike Frische. Big Brother’s Pawn in Springdale faxes its daily transactions to the Police Department. “We were excited to hear that [Springdale ] was doing it,” said Frische. “The last thing we want is stolen merchandise.” |
