August 11, 2026
License to chill? More like stalk
New Bedford police officer accused of using Flock cameras to track ex-partner
Commenters are melting down over cops using car-tracking cameras like breakup spyware
TLDR: A New Bedford officer is accused of using police car-tracking cameras to follow an ex, and the department has now frozen use of the system while it investigates. Online, critics say this proves surveillance tools can be abused fast, while skeptics insist the real problem is the person, not the cameras.
A police breakup story in New Bedford has detonated into a full-blown privacy panic online. An officer is accused by an ex-partner of using city camera tools that log where cars go to track her after their relationship ended. The claims are serious enough that a judge issued an abuse prevention order, suspended the officer’s gun license, and the police department has now paused use of the camera system while it reviews past searches. That alone is explosive — but in the comments, the real fire is the I-told-you-so rage.
The loudest reaction? People dunking on the old line, “if you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to worry about.” Commenters say this case is exactly why regular people fear mass surveillance: not because they’re criminals, but because someone with access might turn it into personal revenge. Others are asking why a patrol officer had access at all, and why hundreds of searches across many camera networks didn’t set off alarms sooner. One person even linked their own county commission testimony against these cameras, basically turning the thread into an anti-camera rally.
But of course, this being the internet, there was pushback and side-eye too. One skeptic brushed it off as a “lovers’ spat,” arguing the issue is the person, not the tool. And yes, there was also the dry, eyebrow-raising joke: “News that it’s a woman for once.” So the thread has everything: fear, smugness, activism, minimization, and gallows humor — all over a system that was supposed to catch crime, not fuel breakup drama.
Key Points
- •A court affidavit accused New Bedford patrol officer Emily Pacheco of using Flock license plate reader data to track an ex-girlfriend.
- •A judge issued an abuse prevention order, found Pacheco posed a credible threat to the ex-girlfriend’s physical safety, and ordered her firearms surrendered while suspending her license to carry.
- •The affidavit alleged stalking behavior after the relationship ended in April, including repeated calls, texts from fake numbers, unannounced visits, and an incident while Pacheco was on duty.
- •Police Chief Jason Thody temporarily suspended the department’s use of Flock pending a review of all past use, and the department said internal investigations were opened with one officer placed on administrative leave.
- •Department data cited by the article showed Pacheco was among the top Flock users this year, with 18 searches in April, 259 in May, and 220 in June, while department policy explicitly prohibits personal or harassing use.