Massachusetts cop accused of using Flock cameras to track ex-girlfriend's car hundreds of times

This story originally appeared on Them.A New Bedford, Massachusetts, police officer is under investigation after being accused of using a Flock Safety camera to track her ex-girlfriend’s movements, per the New Bedford Light. In a signed affidavit, the ex-girlfriend, who is not named in media reports, said she began receiving “endless calls” from her ex-girlfriend Emily Pacheco, a New Bedford police officer, in April after the couple ended their two-year relationship.“She then generated fake phone numbers to reach out to me, calling and texting,” the woman wrote, per the Light. “Showing up to my home unannounced and refuse[d] to leave when asked … saw me pull into my home while on duty, got out of her cruiser and refused to let me leave.”The affidavit also includes allegations that Pacheco ran her license plate number through Flock’s system in order to follow her. Per data obtained by the Light, Pacheco has been one of the top users of the Flock system in New Bedford this year. Pacheco most commonly input “traffic infraction” as her reason for using the tracking software. In April, the month that Pacheco broke up with her ex, she reportedly ran 18 searches. By May, that number ran up to 259, with 220 searches in June, per the Light.Pacheco was served an abuse prevention order last week by a judge who determined that Pacheco posed a credible threat to her ex-girlfriend’s safety. The judge also ordered Pacheco to give up all of her firearms. Her license to carry is also suspended. Pacheco is currently facing an internal affairs investigation, though police did not confirm to the New Bedford Light why she is being investigated. The New Bedford Police Department announced shortly after they opened their investigation that they have temporarily suspended use of the Flock system among police officers. Flock cameras, which automatically scan the license plate number of every car that drives by, have been controversial since their implementation and s