Hanover Park nets first arrest with new pawn software

Hanover Park police have netted their first arrest through a new measure requiring pawnshops and secondhand stores to use software aimed at better tracking stolen property.

Robert Becksted, 38, of the 1000 block of Countryside Drive in Hanover Park, was charged with misdemeanor theft Sept. 12, a case police say investigators broke using the department's Leads Online program implemented over the past few months.

Deputy Chief Tom Cortese said Becksted acted as a go-between for a group of juveniles who burglarized a home on the 7000 block of Hawthorn Lane.

Becksted went to a Hanover Park pawnshop and sold electronics and other goods police say the juveniles took from the house, Cortese said, but the software program flagged the items and alerted authorities.

Becksted is due in court on the charge Tuesday in Rolling Meadows. Three juveniles also are charged with theft; two of them face residential burglary charges as well.

“Leads Online helps fight crime more efficiently by reducing the number of man hours required to review documents,” Cortese said.

Before village trustees made the program mandatory in May, officers had to scan through binders of inventory documents received from local pawn and resale shops.

The record-keeping systems of retailers have since been updated so that detailed transaction information is recorded into a computerized database by the end of each business day. The village increased the licensing fee for pawnshops and secondhand store owners to help pay for the program.

“Any use of technology to curb crime and minimize the time an officer must rifle through pawnshop records looking for stolen items significantly contributes to the time our officers spend on the street,” Mayor Rod Craig said.

Police Chief David Webb has made it a priority to use technology better, and the department's efforts were recognized over the summer when it received the Excellence in Technology Award in the Innovation in Information category through the International Association of Chiefs of Police.

The department was specifically lauded for creating a secure database that allows police personnel to access documents, intelligence bulletins, email and other important information from their squad car, office desktop and home computers.