SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. — An Altamonte Springs man used a drill to dismantle 22 Seminole County and Casselberry license plate readers, smashed some solar panels used to power the systems and threw the equipment into bushes, ditches and retention ponds, deputies said.
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Eric Fiedler, 35, appeared in front of a judge Monday to face numerous felony counts that included vandalism, grand theft and burglary charges.
Deputies said on May 6, they noticed one of their cameras was missing while on patrol in Longwood. They said it appeared to be ripped off its pole, as did other nearby cameras when they went to check on them.
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Deputies said security cameras and a witness helped lead them to Fiedler, who was seen from the agency’s helicopter taking apart multiple cameras prior to his arrest on June 1.
A few days prior to the discovery of the initial vandalism, WFTV interviewed Fiedler about the license plate readers that had suddenly been appearing on major roads throughout the county.
Fiedler, along with others who posted about the readers on social media, took issue with the lack of notice by the sheriff’s office and the lack of transparency about their program. The sheriff’s office has refused to disclose how many readers they have installed in the county.
“I’m not a criminal, but it’s kind of interesting when something pops up that you don’t know about in your neighborhood,” Fiedler said on May 2. “When you realize you’re being tracked every day going to the grocery or the church or the school, and you didn’t have any say in it, it’s a little concerning to me.”
He acknowledged the cameras were installed in public places where there is no expectation of privacy but called the readers a potential steppingstone to more invasive law enforcement techniques.
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Seminole County and the manufacturer of the readers, Flock, defend them as an effective law enforcement tool. Flock said only law enforcement have access to the data and it’s deleted after 30 days.
Deputies said the readers have helped them solve murder, property crime and missing persons cases. Each camera will cost $4,300 to replace, and there is no estimate on when the work will be done, reports said.
WFTV has contacted Fiedler for comment.
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