JUAREZ, Mexico (Border Report) – It’s called Sentinel Tower and will be the tallest building in the El Paso-Juarez area when completed.
More importantly, it’s meant to be the nerve center for monitoring criminal activity in a Mexican border city where three drug cartels and several major gangs are known to operate.
The idea is for trained police officers to monitor computer screens linked to thousands of security cameras, license plate readers, Bluetooth scanners and face-recognition software being placed in Juarez and other cities in the state of Chihuahua.
“As we build this platform, we also are installing arches (with security technology) over every major highway coming in and out of the state and its 13 largest cities,” Chihuahua Public Safety Director Gilberto Loya said during a tour of the structure on Wednesday. “This tower will be our command center, and it is 73 percent done as of today.”
This technology already is yielding results, Loya said. The state police rescued alive all but one of several businesspeople abducted for ransom this year by tracking vehicles used in the crimes. Prosecutors are using security videos and face-recognition technology to build cases against the perpetrators.
The facial AI component and Bluetooth scanners will help authorities locate fugitives, police officials said.
“This is the result of using technology so the police can respond with more efficiency and with more (information),” said Luis Aguirre, chief of staff for the Chihuahua police.
Operators at the Sentinel Tower will be sharing information about the events they witness, the vehicles and people they identify with municipal police officers, medical first responders and other government agencies such as the military, Aguirre said.
The monitoring component will facilitate crime prevention; the quick apprehension of suspects will serve as a deterrent to future criminal activity, the officials said.
In addition, plans call for a direct link to El Paso’s 911 command center so that when U.S. citizens who are in Juarez dial the number, Mexican authorities are looped into the call.
Loya on Wednesday walked reporters to the 13th floor of a steel-and-concrete structure that still lacks walls but offers spectacular vistas of El Paso and Juarez. He said the electrical wiring is on pace with construction and flooring and restrooms are already being installed throughout the first seven floors. A helicopter pad is planned atop the 20th floor once it is built.
Loya said the state so far has paid contractors about $84 million, which includes a maintenance clause for the next three years.
ProVideo contributed to this report.
Read: Read More