XN000022-1991-11-07 — Page 10

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 1991

VEHICLES

WITH APPROXIMATELY 16 VEHICLES REPORTED MISSING IN HONG KONG EVERY DAY, THE TOTAL LIST OF WANTED AND MISSING

CARRIED BY THE EU OFFICERS HOVERS AROUND THE 150 MARK.

AND PLATOON COMMANDER INSPECTOR CHEUNG KIN-KWONG RECKONS THAT EACH MAN IN HIS PLATOON CAN CARRY ABOUT 10 REGISTRATION NUMBERS IN HIS OWN PERSONAL MEMORY BANK.

"THAT MEANS THAT OFFICERS IN ONE CAR CAN REMEMBER 30 OR VEHICLE NUMBERS," MR CHEUNG SAID.

40

ON

+

THE

THE ACCURACY OF THE OFFICERS' MEMORY FOR NUMBERS IS BASED

то LINKING THEM WITH NUMBERS THAT ARE ALREADY FAMILIAR

THEM UNIQUE IDENTIFICATION NUMBERS OF THEIR OWN COLLEAGUES AND FRIENDS.

BY DISREGARDING THE LETTERED PREFIX OF THE NUMBERS OFFICERS RELATE THE NUMERALS TO THOSE GROUPINGS THEY ALREADY KNOW,

NUMBERS THAT THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN NUMBERS OF VEHICLES AND UI BE QUICKLY RECALLED.

THE OFFICERS ALSO SEPARATE A GROUP OF FOUR DIGITS INTO PAIRS TO FURTHER RELATE NUMBERS WHICH ARE FAMILIAR TO THEM.

||

THE

50

CAN

TWO

"AS THE OFFICERS PATROL THEY MIGHT SUDDENLY CRY: "THERE'S AH YING" OR "THERE'S AH HO, MR CHEUNG SAID. -"EACH OFFICER CAN RECALL ABOUT 10 NUMBERS FROM FELLOW OFFICERS HE KNOWS NOW OR IN THE PAST.'

THE OFFICERS IN THE INCREASES BY THE

BECAUSE OF THE DIFFERENT BACKGROUNDS OF UNIT THE PERMUTATIONS OF FAMILIAR NUMBER GROUPINGS NUMBER OF OFFICERS SHARING THE PATROL.

THE OFFICERS KEEP A GRID LIKE LIST OF AROUND 150 VEHICLES BEEN MISSING OR TABULATED ACCORDING TO THEIR NUMBERS AND WHICH HAVE

IS UPDATED DAILY WANTED FOR THE PREVIOUS FEW WEEKS. THE LIST

FROM FIGURES PROVIDED BY THE CRIMINAL RECORDS BUREAU.

IN KOWLOON WEST FOR

SERGEANT BY A FORMER

WITH THE

THE MEMORY SYSTEM HAS BEEN IN OPERATION ABOUT TWO YEARS AND WAS INTRODUCED EMERGENCY UNIT.

OFFICERS

"IT HAS BEEN FOUND TO BE PARTICULARLY SUCCESSFUL WITH IN PATROL CARS, RATHER THAN OFFICERS ON THE BEAT, MR CHEUNG SAID.

OWN SYSTEMS FOR VEHICLES BUT WE THINK THAT

DEALING

"I KNOW THAT OTHER UNITS HAVE THEIR WITH THE PROBLEM OF MISSING AND WANTED THIS METHOD IS THE MOST PRACTICAL AND EFFECTIVE.

"I WOULD LIKE TO SEE OUR SYSTEM ADOPTED BY OTHER EMERGENCY UNITS AND TASK FORCES.'

BY THE

WERE IN FORTY-ONE OF THE 83 VEHICLES LOCATED BY NO. 4 PLATOON

THIS YEAR. AUGUST AND SEPTEMBER

HIGHEST

WAS INDIVIDUAL SCORE POLICE CONSTABLE NG KA-KEUNG WHOSE MEMORY RECALLED 11 VEHICLES IN FIRST NINE MONTHS OF THIS YEAR.

/SUPERINTENDENT OF

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