Google’s Street View imagery has played a crucial role in solving a murder case in northern Spain.
Street View is a tool that provides users with 360-degree imagery captured by cameras mounted on Google’s Street View cars as they travel the world.
Recently uploaded Street View images on Google’s online service helped Spanish police uncover important evidence in a case involving a missing Cuban man. According to the BBC, one of the images captured in the small hamlet of Tajueco, northeast of Madrid, shows what appears to be a body-sized bundle being loaded into a car trunk. This image is still accessible on Street View.
Additional images taken around the same time show an individual moving a large bundle in a wheelbarrow. After analyzing the images and other evidence, police arrested two suspects last month in connection with the man’s disappearance and murder. The man’s remains were discovered in a cemetery two weeks ago.
Remarkably, these images were captured during the first visit of a Google Street View car to the town in 15 years.
The presence of the Google car turned out to be unfortunate for the person loading the bundle into the vehicle but fortunate for the police. It is unclear if the individual noticed the Street View car passing by, but if he did, he would have realized that the camera’s images would be accessible to anyone with an internet connection, including law enforcement.
This isn’t the first time that Google Street View imagery has aided law enforcement. In the past, a mafia figure in hiding was identified in Spain, and twin brothers involved in a robbery were caught on camera in the Netherlands, thanks to Google’s Street View service.
