• by Chuck Martin , April 12, 2018

Facial recognition has been used to identify a crime suspect among thousands of concertgoers.

A 31-year-old suspect wanted by police regarding an economic dispute in China was identified among 60,000 attendees at a concert in Nanchang, Jiangxi province, according to a report in The China Daily.

The suspect, his wife and several friends had driven to the concert by Jacky Cheung, a popular singer from Hong Kong.

“The concert attracted more than 60,000 visitors, so we paid a lot of attention to its security," Li Jin, a police officer, told the China Daily. "We set up several cameras at the ticket entrance, which was equipped with facial recognition technology."

The system was connected to a central police database where identities are automatically compared to those on file.

This is not the first use of facial recognition to identify people out in public.

Last year, police in Qindao, Shandog province used facial recognition to identify 25 fugitives attending a beer festival, according to Liaoshen Evening News.

Also, police in Shenzhen are installing cameras with artificial intelligence to spot and identify jaywalkers. Jaywalkers would be sent a fine via text message.