Police officers are now able to view scenes of crime - from the comfort of their office.

Top-of-the-range technology is being used for the first time in West Yorkshire for police briefings at Bradford Central.

Officers coming on duty will be given the most up-to-date information and digital photographs from crime scenes. It is hoped the new briefing system will then help the police catch criminals.

The system, which also involves closed-circuit television and video footage being projected onto a big screen, has been devised by staff in Bradford Central's Intelligence Unit working with the Community Safety Unit.

A digital camera has been sponsored by Bradford City Centre Beat - which unites police and businesses in the fight against crime. Members include Sunwin House, the Kirkgate Centre, and Marks & Spencer.

The digital camera allows photographs taken at scenes of crimes to be instantly viewed by officers at briefings.

Intelligence officers Michael Glover and Nigel Lee visit the scenes of crime each day to glean information and take digital photographs of the scene.

Additional intelligence and pictures of stolen property can also be put into the presentation to give officers coming on duty an immediate image to work with. Around one hundred officers are briefed each day during four main sessions.

Crime manager Detective Chief Inspector John Hawley said: "If an officer has a visual image of the crime - pictures of stolen property, suspects wanted for questioning or an unusual break-in - then they know what to look for. Photos will be taken within hours of the crime, so it is more likely that any stolen property will still be in circulation and patterns of crime may emerge for officers to investigate."

DCI Hawley said a photograph of a house which had been burgled, or the way a burglar has got in, gives officers a much better understanding of the crime and a visual prompt if they see a similar scene in the future.

"It is said a picture is worth a thousand words and this certainly seems to be holding true," he said.

Trial runs have already received positive feedback from the police and victims of crime.

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