New Mexico Man Filmed Removing 10 Flock Cameras Worth $16,500, Then Was Arrested

3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Sep 12

Jevon Martinez, 44, was arrested after authorities said he removed 10 Flock Safety camera systems in Bernalillo County on Sept. 2 and documented the takedowns on social media.
Authorities valued the equipment at $16,500 and said only two cameras were tied to the sheriff's office; the other eight belonged to neighborhood associations, undercutting Martinez's claim that he was simply returning abandoned gear.
Deputies stopped Martinez outside sheriff's headquarters after he drove past the building three times with the equipment in his pickup, and he now faces larceny and interference with communications charges.
Martinez remained in custody because of a separate Sandoval County case in which he had already faced nine felony charges over the alleged removal and damage of three other license plate reader systems.
The arrest lands amid a wider backlash against Flock in New Mexico: Sheriff John Allen had already moved to end three contracts with the company over privacy and data-sharing concerns, while still backing license-plate reader technology from other vendors.