Home Security Camera Footage Leads to Arrest in Mollie Tibbets Case

Home Security Camera Footage Leads to Arrest in Mollie Tibbets Case

Police were able to track down a suspect after receiving security camera footage from a home near the site where Mollie Tibbetts disappeared.

  • By Sydny Shepard
  • Aug 23, 2018

The country has been mystified by the recent disappearance of Mollie Tibbetts, a college student in Iowa. Police on the case investigated for over a month before getting a break in the case they needed to finally give the Tibbetts family some answers.

Investigators spoke with hundreds of people in the search for clues about Tibbett's disappearance, but it wasn't until a neighbor turned over his home security camera that police caught their big break.

Police watched hours of footage before spotting Tibbetts on camera. They could see her running through an area east of Brooklyn, Iowa, where she was last seen, and a car moving closely behind her, according to an affidavit.

Police were able to link the car to a 24-year-old man and "from that we were able to track his pattern in the routes in which he took," said Rick Rahn, a special agent in charge at the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.

Because of the home security footage, police were able to question the suspect, who then led investigators to the place where police eventually found Tibbetts' body. Rahn told news stations on Wednesday that the video was "central" to finding the suspect in Tibbetts' disappearance.

"He certainly wasn't known to the local police department," Rahn said. "So we, through our interviews and conducting a number of different canvas interviews throughout the community, we weren't aware of him until we were able to locate the video. So it's not like he was on anybody's radar throughout the investigation."

Police departments across the country have started to see the value in home security cameras, with many systems now allowing home owners to download and send footage directly to police to aid in open investigations.

About the Author

Sydny Shepard is the Executive Editor of Campus Security & Life Safety.

Featured

  • AI Is Now the Leading Cybersecurity Concern for Security, IT Leaders

    Arctic Wolf recently published findings from its State of Cybersecurity: 2025 Trends Report, offering insights from a global survey of more than 1,200 senior IT and cybersecurity decision-makers across 15 countries. Conducted by Sapio Research, the report captures the realities, risks, and readiness strategies shaping the modern security landscape. Read Now

  • Analysis of AI Tools Shows 85 Percent Have Been Breached

    AI tools are becoming essential to modern work, but their fast, unmonitored adoption is creating a new kind of security risk. Recent surveys reveal a clear trend – employees are rapidly adopting consumer-facing AI tools without employer approval, IT oversight, or any clear security policies. According to Cybernews Business Digital Index, nearly 90% of analyzed AI tools have been exposed to data breaches, putting businesses at severe risk. Read Now

  • Software Vulnerabilities Surged 61 Percent in 2024, According to New Report

    Action1, a provider of autonomous endpoint management (AEM) solutions, today released its 2025 Software Vulnerability Ratings Report, revealing a 61% year-over-year surge in discovered software vulnerabilities and a 96% spike in exploited vulnerabilities throughout 2024, amid an increasingly aggressive threat landscape. Read Now

  • Motorola Solutions Named Official Safety Technology Supplier of the Ryder Cup through 2027

    Motorola Solutions has today been named the Official Safety Technology Supplier of the 2025 and 2027 Ryder Cup, professional golf’s renowned biennial team competition between the United States and Europe. Read Now

  • Evolving Cybersecurity Strategies

    Organizations are increasingly turning their attention to human-focused security approaches, as two out of three (68%) cybersecurity incidents involve people. Threat actors are shifting from targeting networks and systems to hacking humans via social engineering methods, living off human errors as their most prevalent attack vector. Whether manipulated or not, human cyber behavior is leveraged to gain backdoor access into systems. This mainly results from a lack of employee training and awareness about evolving attack techniques employed by malign actors. Read Now

Most   Popular

New Products

  • 4K Video Decoder

    3xLOGIC’s VH-DECODER-4K is perfect for use in organizations of all sizes in diverse vertical sectors such as retail, leisure and hospitality, education and commercial premises.

  • Unified VMS

    AxxonSoft introduces version 2.0 of the Axxon One VMS. The new release features integrations with various physical security systems, making Axxon One a unified VMS. Other enhancements include new AI video analytics and intelligent search functions, hardened cybersecurity, usability and performance improvements, and expanded cloud capabilities

  • Camden CM-221 Series Switches

    Camden CM-221 Series Switches

    Camden Door Controls is pleased to announce that, in response to soaring customer demand, it has expanded its range of ValueWave™ no-touch switches to include a narrow (slimline) version with manual override. This override button is designed to provide additional assurance that the request to exit switch will open a door, even if the no-touch sensor fails to operate. This new slimline switch also features a heavy gauge stainless steel faceplate, a red/green illuminated light ring, and is IP65 rated, making it ideal for indoor or outdoor use as part of an automatic door or access control system. ValueWave™ no-touch switches are designed for easy installation and trouble-free service in high traffic applications. In addition to this narrow version, the CM-221 & CM-222 Series switches are available in a range of other models with single and double gang heavy-gauge stainless steel faceplates and include illuminated light rings.