Cactus Camera: Police Place Cameras In Fake Cacti [Video]
Big Brother is watching from cameras installed inside of several fake cactus plants. The new speed cameras in Paradise Valley outside of Phoenix are intriguing folks around the nation, according to Fox 10 Phoenix. The cactus cameras have concerned residents about an hour’s drive away from Phoenix, with folks wondering why cameras were placed inside fake cactus towers.
According to officials in the Arizona town, the cactus cameras were all about attractiveness, not secrecy. Police plan to run license plates against a hot-list database to catch criminals or recover Amber Alert victims. The same technology is on traffic lights, but cops didn’t want to tell the public until issues concerning privacy and data retention were fully vetted. The cactus cameras aren’t active yet.
Approximately two dozen fake cactus covers serve as fake covers for cell phone towers. The City of Paradise Valley is gaining plenty of attention for their fake cactus cameras, with the Fox 10 Phoenix article and video being shared more than 5,300 on Facebook already.
As reported by the Inquisitr, the issues that Edward Snowden revealed in the CitizenFour documentary about NSA spying has made the general public more aware of government surveillance tactics.
One of the cactus cameras is located within a roundabout near 40th Street and Stanford. According to the Daily Mail, the cactus cameras are freaking out residents who are concerned about their intended uses.
The cactus cameras aren’t the only eyes in the sky being installed around the area, according to ABC15. In a new video about traffic cameras, cops have confirmed the following locations of speed trap cameras around town.
- Tatum Blvd. and Lincoln Dr.
- Tatum Blvd. and Desert Jewel Dr.
- 36th St. and Palo Cristi (Lincoln Dr.)
- Mockingbird Ln. and Lincoln Dr.
Those speed trap cameras, however, aren’t getting as much attention as the cactus cameras. While long-term residents have seen lots of changes in the area over the decades, it has never included a fake Saguaro cactus with cameras in it until now. Certain folks complain that the natural beauty of the area is being marred by the fake cameras inside tall phony cacti.
Paradise Valley is known as a posh suburb. Indeed, a peek at the homes in the cactus camera town show lots of houses priced from $1 million and upwards. Apparently, that pricey area has authorities with plans to protect them via fake cactus plants that have “cact-eye” surveillance cameras watching them.
[Image via Fox 10]
