Richmond police towed Rosalyn Crump’s 2012 Hyundai Elantra from her Sussex Street home in the early hours of July 29 after a Flock camera hit linked the vehicle to a shooting. Body-camera video obtained by the 12 On Your Side Investigators shows officers telling Crump the car was involved in a crime, then later releasing it once they located the actual suspect. Crump says the tow left the vehicle undrivable and has cost her wages and reliable transportation for her three boys.
The confrontation began just before 2 a.m. Officers referenced Virginia tag TX 3443 and questioned whether Crump’s account matched the Flock data. She told them she had been at her mother’s house earlier, returned by 4 p.m., and waited for her children to get off the bus at 5. No one else had driven the car, she said. An officer on the video remarked that her story “doesn’t match the Flock.” The vehicle was towed by Seibert’s Towing. Roughly four hours later, police called to say it could be released.
Crump told investigators the experience was traumatic. She lost wages, one of her jobs is in jeopardy because she cannot arrive on time, and she is paying for a rental car out of pocket. The towing company initially accepted responsibility for damage and said it would make the situation right; the claim was later turned over to insurance, and the car was declared a total loss. A GoFundMe has been established to help with transportation and living costs.
The same technology that produced the wrongful tow helped solve a larger auto-theft investigation. Richmond police said detectives investigating the theft of 25 Hondas over several weeks used Flock license plate readers, an electronic tracking device in one of the vehicles, and coordination with Petersburg police to locate a chop shop on Deerfield Drive. Officers found dozens of Honda parts, including motors, doors, hoods, and trunk lids. Some vehicles had been cut in half. Lt. Brian Rogers described tools indicative of chopping cars and a box truck containing what he called the carcass of a vehicle.
Two men were arrested and charged with grand larceny-auto and conspiracy to commit larceny: Jhon Alexander Jabier, 22, of no known address, and Luiyi Munoz-Inoa, 33, of Hazle Township, Pennsylvania. Police said five Hondas stolen in Richmond have been returned or their components recovered. Investigators noted a possible connection to a larger operation; Philadelphia police had recently announced a similar Honda chop shop. Rogers said the suspects appeared to be breaking door handles and using electronic devices to clone key fobs. Hondas were targeted, he said, because the parts are interchangeable across models and hold higher resale value.
Richmond currently operates approximately 99 fixed Flock cameras that photograph every passing vehicle and retain the data for seven days after the city reduced the previous 21-day window. Mayor Danny Avula has said the city is reevaluating the contract and has floated the idea of a Virginia-only network with stronger local controls. Police Chief Rick Edwards has defended the system as a tool that has helped solve shootings, abductions, and hit-and-runs while acknowledging community privacy concerns.
Virginia Insider analysis: The two October 19 WWBT reports illustrate the core tension in the Flock debate. Traditional mobile license plate readers mounted on patrol cars have operated for years with limited controversy beyond data-retention periods. Fixed networks that log every vehicle create a searchable record of movements. When the data is accurate, it can locate a chop shop and return stolen property. When it is wrong, an innocent mother can lose her only car, her wages, and her peace of mind. Richmond’s decision to reevaluate the contract and shorten retention suggests local officials are already weighing that trade-off. Viewers can decide whether the crime-solving benefit outweighs the documented risk of harm to people who have done nothing wrong.
What happens next: Crump continues to seek compensation for the damaged vehicle and reliable transportation. Richmond police say the Honda theft investigation remains open as detectives match serial numbers from the recovered parts. City officials have not announced a final decision on renewing or replacing the Flock contract. Communities across Virginia continue to debate whether automatic license plate readers should remain, be restricted further, or be replaced by systems with tighter data controls.
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