Philadelphia police van is disguised as Google Maps vehicle

Philadelphia (AP) – Philadelphia police officers attached a large Google Maps logo to a surveillance van in an apparent attempt to disguise it as one of the company’s street-filming cars. Police spokesman Lt. John Stanford said Friday that no one was authorized by the department to place the decal on the van. He says it appeared officers were “being creative.” The department was made aware of the decal by a news outlet Wednesday and it was removed the same day. A Google spokeswoman confirms the van was not part of its Street View fleet and says it’s looking into the report. The fleet records panoramic street views. The most common vehicles used are compact cars mounted with cameras and wrapped in the company’s logo and mapping graphics.