Video from a home surveillance camera shows an intruder holding a hammer, which he used to pry open a window, according to police. He and another assailant broke in and robbed the home in broad daylight while an unwitting nanny was caring for a four-month-old baby in an upstairs bedroom.
Imagine the fright.
On the morning of Sept. 28, a Massachusetts woman left her four-month-old baby in the care of a nanny before setting out to run a few errands. Upon returning home several hours later, she takes her home surveillance system for a test drive to assess footage of camera views from around her upscale residence while she was away.
In an exterior shot suddenly the woman can see a young man wearing sunglasses approaching a side entrance before jostling the door. In the kitchen area, an intruder enters the scene. He's wielding a hammer and slipping on gloves. Meanwhile, in an upstairs bedroom, there's the nanny sitting in a chair gently rocking the baby. In yet another view, an intruder is exiting the house with two computers in tow.
"The nanny had no idea the intruders had even entered the house," Wayne Alarm Systems President Ralph Sevinor told me the other day. I phoned Sevinor after learning it was Wayne Alarm that had installed the woman's 14-camera system less than 24 hours prior to the break-in. How's that for an immediate return on investment? It gets better.
A local television station in Boston reported on the break-in, including airing crisp footage of the two men and their home-invasion deed. As it turns out, a viewer recognized one of the intruders in the report and phoned police. Voilà! An arrest was made.
Call it another little victory for the electronic security industry. But here's the kicker: According to the news report, the woman chose to outfit her home with CCTV not for security concerns, but for the sole reason to watch her child while away from home. The solution included the capability to view live and recorded feeds on her iPad.
Here's a shining example of why security cameras are becoming a practical opportunity in the residential market, and how mobile connectivity can be expected to increasingly drive new sales.
It's all about the economics and technological advances that are driving consumer expectations, says Wayne. "The prices have come down and more importantly the quality of the video has gone up. For the longest time I was not big believer in cameras because of the murkiness, the lack of contrast. I was pretty impressed by seeing this."
As for the mother, she now has a newfound security appreciation for CCTV: In the initial news report, a Wayne Alarm tech is briefly shown preparing more cameras to be added to the system, which includes an OpenEye DVR and a mix of IP cameras by Speco and Clinton. You can view the report here. A follow-up report on the arrest of the alleged ne'er do wells can be viewed here.
"These are the good stories, instant gratification," says Wayne, a SSI Hall of Fame inductee. "These are stories that you look at and can say, 'We got the bad guys.'"
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