How geolocation helped Philly cops catch “The Grinch That Stole Christmas” [VIDEO]

Thanks to the Philadelphia Police Department‘s award-winning new crime mapping system, Philly cops managed to nab “The Grinch That Stole Christmas.” That is, a man who broke into South Philadelphia’s St. Gabriel’s Convent two nights in a row during the holidays and made off with more than $1,800 in money for food and gifts for the poor.

Detective Justin Frank told the story to a crowd of more than 14,000 GIS professionals at the annual Esri International User Conference in San Diego earlier this month.

The police GIS software won a Special Achievement Award from Esri in May. Project manager Grant Ervin said it’s changing the way the Police Department “works and thinks.”

Watch a video of the presentation below. Find a bigger version here (scroll through the videos to find the Philly one).