Reminder: Suffolk Police trialling Live Facial Recognition technology in Ipswich town centre today

Police in Ipswich are trialling new face-scanning technology to track down people wanted in connection with serious offences today.

Suffolk Police have been given two vans and equipment with Live Facial Recognition technology by Essex Police.

The vans’ live cameras will scan faces and compare them against a watch list of wanted individuals.

The force warned that images of those not on the list will be instantly deleted and not stored.

However, if a match is found, officers on the beat will verify that person’s identity and determine the next steps.

It is hoped the scheme would enhance public safety and assist ongoing investigations into serious offences.

Assistant Chief Constable Eamonn Bridger said: “This technology has been proven elsewhere to be an effective tactic for locating and arresting suspects that are wanted for serious offences.

“People in Ipswich on February 22 should feel reassured that we are only looking for those individuals who have committed serious offences.

“We are keen to raise public awareness around our use of technology to protect communities and bring offenders to justice so it is important that we provide insight around the trial of this equipment and tactics.

“It’s important to make clear that we take your privacy very seriously and images of members of the public won’t be stored.

“If you are in a location where LFR is being deployed and you are not one of the specific people we’re trying to locate, your image will be immediately and automatically deleted.”