'Facial mapping' technology to catch criminals from CCTV footage on the way

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Police are within months of setting up the country's first system that recognises suspected criminals and terrorists from CCTV footage.

The 'facial mapping' scheme will enable officers to identify wanted criminals within minutes of being caught on tape.

It will compare photos from a digital mugshot database with film and stills from a crime scene and come up with around ten of the closest matches.

To build up its mugshot database, Merseyside Police – which is running the pilot scheme along with Lancashire Police and West Yorkshire Police – is taking digital photographs of 70,000 suspects arrested in Liverpool every year.

These include those accused of minor crimes such as motoring offences and the images will be retained even if they are not charged with any offence.

The chief constable of Merseyside Police, Bernard Hogan-Howe, told the magazine New Statesman: 'In future we could scan images of shoplifters and motorists who drive off from petrol stations without paying.

'Another example would be someone who is photographed committing an assault outside a nightclub.'

He said the system could be up and running 'later this year'.