Hampshire and Isle of Wight police hope new technology will help with 'Mad Friday'
The last Friday before Christmas, known as 'Mad Friday', will see more police on patrol
Last updated 19th Dec 2025
As shops across the South gear up for the Friday before Christmas, police are telling us they hope to use facial recognition vans to keep communities safer.
It's after the vans were rolled out yesterday across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight with the aim to target high-profile criminals in crowds.
'Mad Friday' is known to be one of the busiest days of the year for shoppers and police are telling us they will be on patrol in larger numbers.
Alex Charge, Superintendent and District Commander for Southampton, said: "Mad Friday, all these sorts of events, we'll have lots of people coming down so we want to ensure that we're using the most effective bits of technology we can to deter criminals and catch any criminals that we can.
"We want this to be a thriving area where people come to spend their money and bring money into the city.
"Our part of that, working in partnership with the local authority, with Go Southampton, is to create that environment where there isn't lots of criminality, and antisocial behaviour is dealt with effectively."
Two new vans are being deployed across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight with the aim of the technology being to target priority suspects known to the area.
Launching as part of the city centre's Operation Predict patrols, the vans aim to help tackle shop-lifting and anti-social behaviour in the city.
The police say facial recognition can scan crowds to identify subjects at a rate and level of accuracy that can't be replicated by officers on the ground.
The vans will be clearly marked, with posters and leaflets being handed out in the area, notifying people of the operation and how it works.