Auburn Police use of Flock cameras leads to arrest of wrong man
Published 10:21 am Friday, July 31, 2026
The use of Flock cameras by Auburn Police to track down a potential shooting suspect resulted in the arrest of the wrong man.
Auburn Police credited the use of Flock cameras, which capture license plates of vehicles, in a July 28 Facebook news release for leading to the arrest of a Des Moines man for reportedly firing shots at another vehicle at about 3 a.m. July 28 near the intersection of Sixth Street SE and Auburn Way South.
But it turned out he was the wrong man.
“Still under investigation, but initially a late 40s male was arrested in Des Moines after the vehicle was tracked with Flock to that jurisdiction, where he lives,” according to a July 30 email from Auburn Police spokesperson Kolby Crossley in response to questions from the Auburn Reporter about the incident. “Through further investigation, that person was released and a different male in his early 40s was arrested in Auburn and booked for felony harassment.”
When further questioned about the arrest of the Des Moines man, Crossley replied:
“After further investigation it was determined he was not a suspect,” Crossley said. “No involvement. That’s all I know. Not sure the reasoning at the moment.”
The Flock camera incident occurred just a week after more than a dozen Auburn residents told the City Council they were enraged at the implementation of the 37 cameras across the city. Residents said the cameras make them feel uncomfortable and surveilled.
The cameras capture the license plate, along with attributes like make, model, color, and other visible characteristics, according to Flock, which is based in Atlanta, Georgia.
As for the shooting, a dispute reportedly broke out between two vehicles and led to a shooting from one of the vehicles before both fled the scene, according to police. Additionally, a gunshot victim was treated at MultiCare Auburn Medical Center and was reportedlylinked to the case.
“The use of ALPR (Automated License Plate Reader, aka Flock) technology played a critical role in identifying the suspect vehicle and led directly to an arrest in this case,” according to the July 28 Auburn Police press release. “Tools such as ALPR technology enable law enforcement to efficiently provide professional services to the community which increase community safety when crimes of violence are being investigated.”
Only in this case, the use of that technology initially led to the arrest of the wrong man.
Editor Steve Hunter contributed to this article.
