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Trace.com, a subsidiary of MyThings Inc., is collaborating with the TPCA,
the Texas Department of Public Safety and more than 500 local Texas police
departments and sheriff’s offices to make Texas stolen property files freely
available to the general public at
http://www.trace.com/. Already
partnered with more than half the police forces in the United Kingdom and
a number of international law enforcement organizations, Trace’s Texas project
is its first law enforcement partnership in the United States.
The Trace online database includes all identifiable property reported
stolen to the FBI by hundreds of Texas police agencies. Texans can
access the Trace database, free of charge, to:
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Research items before purchasing them to determine whether
or not they are stolen,
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Report recently stolen property to law enforcement, and
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Create a secure, anonymous inventory of their valuable property
that could aid in recovering the property if it is ever stolen.
“Trace offers Texans a new method to fight theft-related crime,” said Chief
Melvin Martin of the Abilene Police Department and president of the Texas
Police Chiefs Association. “Having a single database of stolen items that all
Texans – from recent crime victims, to eBay customers, to antique dealers and
pawnbrokers – can access will help us identify and return stolen property. The
holiday shopping season is beginning. Robberies and crimes often increase at
that time. We are asking the public to help us fight crime by visiting Trace.com.”
Founded and based in Europe, Trace chose Texas for its initial U.S. launch
because of the state’s large number of property crimes and strong tradition of
law enforcement.
“We are honored to partner with Texas law enforcement,” said Ken Bouche,
vice president of Trace. “There were nearly 1 million property crimes in Texas
last year. Trace.com was created to reclaim stolen property, and Trace is
committed to helping Texans enjoy and take care of their belongings and get
them back when they are stolen, as well as to prevent future criminal activity.”
For more information, please contact:
Ken Bouche, Vice President of Trace: 630-257-0923
Keir Murray, KLM Consulting: 713-553-8348
James McLaughlin, Executive Director of the Texas Police Chiefs Association: 512-281-5400
Tela Mange, spokeswoman for Texas Dept. of Public Safety, 512-424-2080
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