SWFL.io - Local NewsMiyoshi Price
•7/31/2026
CAPE CORAL, Fla. (WINK)— Two license plate reader cameras were ripped out of the ground and off their posts at a busy intersection in Cape Coral.
The incident happened at the intersection of Diplomat Parkway East and Santa Barbara Boulevard. WINK News is working to find out how the cameras ended up damaged.
The damage grabbed the attention of drivers and neighbors, as well as the Cape Coral Police Department. Wendy Fernandez lives in the neighborhood and says she barely notices the cameras but likes having them there.
"I hope that it wasn't intentional. Maybe someone was speeding," Fernandez said.
Hundreds of these license plate reading cameras are along busy intersections throughout Southwest Florida. John Paul, who has lived in Cape Coral his whole life, says his concern is privacy.
"Everyone's getting watched. Everything's getting noted. You know, you can't go out without a either a home ring camera watching you or a flock camera 24/7. It just seems a little bit of evasion of privacy," Paul said.
Paul says it's the trust factor if the cameras are being used for what the city says they are being used for. Law enforcement says the cameras help find stolen vehicles, track down criminals or help locate a missing person.
Others question what too much information is and whether privacy is being lost. Paul says there's been growing distrust between citizens and authorities.
"There's been a lot more distrust in the between the the citizens and the people versus you know the higher powers," Paul said.
The investigation into how the license plate readers were damaged is ongoing.