NATIONAL: How a new device will let police scan suspects on the street
MOREÂ suspected criminals will have their fingerprints taken on the street in under a minute after Britain's biggest police force developed its own scanning software.
A number of forces have used similar technology since 2012, but the Metropolitan Police has now developed a system using cheaper kit that also saves £200,000 a year in support costs.
The reduced bill means another 600 devices will be rolled out to officers in the next six months. In recent years around 100 have been in use across the capital.
The devices, that plug in to a smartphone, can check a suspect's prints across police databases without the need to go to a police station.
This can discourage criminals being able to use a false name when stopped.
In February the Home Office said it expected around 20 forces to be using a new mobile fingerprint scanning system by the end of the year.