UTICA -- The Utica Police Department celebrated the first full year it has been on Facebook this week.
Detectives say the websiteis making a difference in their investigations. Utica PD has more than 13,600 fans and has arrested 34 people with tips they have gathered from the page.
It started as a public relations tool, but has grown into a lot more.
Sergeant Steve Hauck says, "I posted a photo of someone we were looking for one day, immediately found out who they were. I came across the epiphany, hey, maybe we can actually solve some crimes with this."
The Utica PD monitors the posts people put on their page all the time.
Other agencies are using the tool, as well. Earlier this week the Jefferson County Sheriff's Department announced it created a Facebook page.
