Nottinghamshire Police located a 12-year old boy who had gone missing from the Oxton area of the county overnight, thanks to help from the force drone team’s ‘eyes in the sky’.
Officers began their search for the boy after he was reported missing just after 8 pm on Saturday 4 April.
The force’s drone team were deployed to assist officers soon after, with the drone’s pilot helping to direct officers to the boy who was found safe just over an hour later.
The case is the latest in a string of success stories for the team of specially-trained officers who are complementing the work of their colleagues on the ground by supporting everything from drug warrants and river rescues to policing large-scale football matches.
Nottinghamshire Police’s Deputy Chief Constable, Rachel Barber, said: “In the short time that the team have been in the sky, they have proved to be invaluable in supporting officers on the ground and the drones are now a vital part of operational policing in our county where it genuinely is making a difference each and every day.
“This incident is yet another success story for the team and, in this case, it has given us the edge in helping to locate someone who we had genuine concerns for the safety of much sooner than had we been relying solely on traditional search techniques.”