Japan’s police to deploy AI-powered drones in disaster-hit areas to deter looters

The drones will be used to complement police officers on the ground and use AI to identify individuals acting suspiciously in a disaster zone, such as by moving from one damaged building to another and carrying items. Operators will then instruct officers on the location of suspects.

The initiative is likely to be effective in helping police cover large areas affected by a natural disaster such as an earthquake or tsunami, according to Shinichi Ishizuka, founder of the Tokyo-based Criminal Justice Future think tank.

But the technology would place “great power” in the hands of the police that some claim could be abused, Ishizuka said.

“A key part of the police’s job is to prevent crime and that includes ensuring the security of an area that has been affected by a natural disaster,” he told This Week in Asia.

“Drones would make that much easier to do and reassure people who have had to evacuate their homes that they are being protected. In that respect, this is not such a radical proposal and it is needed because of recent disasters,” he added.

The March 2011 earthquake and tsunami that devastated north-east Japan and killed more than 20,000 people and its aftermath was still relatively fresh in many people’s minds, Ishizuka said.

Millions of Japanese have also been unnerved this month by warnings that the long-feared megathrust earthquake in the Nankai Trough, off southern Japan, is imminent.

There were a few reports of looting in the aftermath of the 2011 quake but far more cases were reported after the 7.5-magnitude Noto peninsula tremor on January 1.

Ten days after the Noto disaster, in which 339 people died, “looters, scam artists and thieves have descended on Ishikawa Prefecture, preying on victims of the New Year’s Day