Drone vs. shoplifter: Watch how Redmond PD tracks an alleged thief from high in the sky

If you spend any time on social media, you’ve likely seen plenty of videos of suspected shoplifters — in the Seattle area and beyond — trying to make a getaway with armloads of merchandise. Often, these suspects fight off store employees or shoppers and evade capture.

But it’s rare to see a drone get in on the action.

A shoplifting call this week at a Target store in Redmond, Wash., prompted such a response as part of that city’s Drone as First Responder (DFR) program. And because the Redmond Police Department apparently knows such content makes for good social video, they shared the footage online (below).

Redmond PD said the suspect was “reported removing security tags and concealing merchandise in a stolen backpack.” As soon as a 911 call came in, a drone was launched, arriving on scene before officers on the ground.

In the video posted to X, the male suspect dashes out of the Target and sprints across nearby parking lots. High above, the drone tracks his every move as a remote operator relays coordinates to responding officers. The aerial footage even captures the live audio dialogue between responders.

The suspect is tracked to a nearby hotel and then a park-and-ride lot where he boards a bus. The video switches to ground-level body-cam footage as officers board the bus and safely apprehend the suspect.

Redmond PD said in its post that the alleged shoplifter stole approximately $330 in merchandise.

This isn’t the department’s first viral high-tech chase. Earlier this year, the department shared drone video of a reckless driver eluding police at high speeds.

“Multiple drones were deployed remotely from docking locations throughout the city by a single Drone as First Responder (DFR) pilot, allowing officers to maintain continuous visual contact with the vehicle as it drove recklessly across Redmond,” Redmond PD shared on Facebook.

Redmond first integrated drones into its policing in 2019. In November 2024, the Federal Aviation Administration  granted the department approval to operate drones without a visual observer and beyond visual line of sight. Redmond was the first agency in Washington to receive this authorization after extensive testing and FAA coordination, according to the department.

Redmond Police Chief Darrell Lowe has been vocal about his department’s embrace of technology, previously speaking to GeekWire about leveraging tools ranging from drones to artificial intelligence.

With a staff of approximately 85 officers, as of December, Lowe employs two full-time drone pilots operating from a flight control center equipped with autonomous drones from Seattle-based Brinc and Skydio. Integrated directly into the department’s dispatch system, the drones can launch and arrive on-scene in under two minutes.

The department also maintains a public web dashboard that tracks real-time data from the program, including total DFR calls, response times, and the number of suspects located. According to the tracker, the department has logged 1,360 DFR calls so far this year, with shoplifting accounting for 82 of those responses.