In recognition of their contributions to law enforcement technology, two Monroe Police Officers have been lauded for their success in breaking up a sophisticated vehicle theft ring that tormented multiple states. Officer Aaron Beckham and Detective Matt Sierk received the 2025 Flock Safety Solved Award for their investigative prowess, applying License Plate Reader (LPR) technology to track and ultimately dismantle the criminal network, as reported in a social media post by the Monroe Police Department.
The case, which spanned January through December of 2024, centered around the thefts of specific high-performance vehicles including Dodge Chargers, Dodge Challengers, and Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawks, the criminals employing advanced electronic hacking tools to reprogram key fobs and neutralize security features in less than five minutes making the situation exceedingly difficult for law enforcement. According to the Monroe PD's social media post, officer Beckham and detective Sierk plumbed the depths of historical LPR data to spot a vehicle that appeared consistently at various theft scenes, weaving a trail between Charlotte and Myrtle Beach on the dates of interest.
The decisive moment in the investigation came after a Flock LPR alert enabled a traffic stop on a North Carolina highway that resulted in the apprehension of the primary suspect, whose vehicle contained incriminating items like key fob cloning devices and electronic hacking tools, as well as parts from disassembled high-performance cars. In aggregate, law enforcement agencies recovered over 30 stolen vehicles and the value of the property pegged well beyond 1.5 million dollars, with the seized evidence implicating an expansive network of individuals engaged in interstate vehicle theft operations.
At the Atlanta-hosted Flock Safety Solve Award Banquet, the collective efforts of the CMPD, Myrtle Beach PD, Monroe PD, and their partners received high praise, with one speaker noting, “This case highlights how technology-driven policing, when paired with seamless inter-agency cooperation, can overcome complex jurisdictional challenges” and continued by lauding the officers and investigators for their unwavering dedication to public safety, as noted in the Monroe PD’s post.
