VIN ALERT AIDS CALVERT COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE with
MISSING PERSON HOMICIDE INVESTIGATION
In 2014 the Calvert County, Maryland Sheriff’s Office was able to utilize CARFAX Law Enforcement
Investigative Tools to generate leads in a missing person case that was believed to be a homicide.
The suspect vehicle involved in the incident was a 1996 Honda Civic, VIN 1HGEJ8148TL021220.
The Detective working the case thought the vehicle had been hidden or disposed of after the
incident. The Detective entered the vehicle information into the database at the National Crime
Information Center (NCIC), not as stolen but as a “BOLO”, and had not been able locate the
vehicle.
The Calvert County Sheriff’s Office has access to the CARFAX Law Enforcement Investigative
Tools, which includes the VIN Alert tool. The Detective entered the VIN of the suspect vehicle
into the CARFAX database thereby putting the vehicle on alert for Law Enforcement only. A few
weeks later, the Detective received an alert on the VIN.
The event that triggered the alert was the sale of the vehicle in nearby Virginia. It was
subsequently registered in Virginia, and this data was captured on the CARFAX report, resulting
in the alert. The Detective in Calvert County was able to track down the new owner, impound
the vehicle and execute a search warrant, continuing their work to further the investigation.
The Detective working this case was surprised the car went undetected by state registry
personnel given the “BOLO” attached to it in NCIC, allowing persons to re-register the vehicle
without his agency being notified. The Detective stated that if he hadn’t placed the vehicle
information in the CARFAX VIN Alert database he may not have found the vehicle at all. Access
to the CARFAX Investigative tools is Free for your agency. www.carfaxforpolice.com
CARFAXFORPOLICE.COM