Ganz DVR survives attack during bank robbery in South Africa

(14/12/2006)

The physical strength and operational resilience of Ganz digital video recorders has been demonstrated following a high profile bank robbery in South Africa. The 16-channel ZR-DH1621P Ganz DVR that was recording CCTV camera pictures at one branch of a national South African bank remained intact during the incident, despite the criminals’ attempts to put it out of action in their bid to conceal the surveillance footage of the attack.

A gang of robbers targeted the premises and broke in during one evening after banking hours. Once inside, they set about damaging the internal surveillance cameras, hitting them with sticks to smash their lenses. Having done their homework, the gang then quickly moved into the bank’s ‘back office’ area, intent on disabling the Ganz DVR, knowing the danger to them of potential recognition and subsequent police prosecution if the cameras recordings survived.

The unit was housed in a 19inch equipment rack and the assailants smashed the front glass of the cabinet before then trying to destroy the DVR using a crowbar. While the front panel of the DVR was damaged in the process, it still continued to record activity within the branch. As a result, investigators were able to extract all the video material they required in tracking down the perpetrators.

CBC’s distributor in South Africa, C-Video Concepts, has supplied similar 16- channel DVRs for installation in all of the banking group’s branches around the country. The ZR-DH series of Triplex DVRs – available in either 9 or 16-channel versions – have a built-in multiplexer and telemetry, combining flexibility, versatility and usability within a single unit. The operator can play, record and view multi- screen images at the same time. Additionally, remote view and record can be achieved over a TCP/IP network when using the free client software supplied.

“We’re very pleased at the way our DVR performed during this real-life incident,” commented Geoff Bowers, CBC (EUROPE) Ltd’s Division Manager. “This was no laboratory test – to have survived such a violent attack and continued operating satisfactorily proves the integrity of the equipment. We believe this adds another facet to our DVR range’s list of market leading features, which are proving a popular specification choice for a variety of installation requirements.”

Related topics:  CCTV System   Remote Monitoring and Surveillance   Security market sectors 

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