South Florida police officers used to return to the station at the end of a shift to turn in their paperwork and patrol cars. But technology has revolutionized a cop's workday, and those laptops, radios and take-home cruisers make it possible to go AWOL or duck out of work early.

SunPass toll records analyzed by the Sun Sentinel found cops from Miami to Plantation cutting out before their shifts ended, sometimes signing off via the radio from locales nowhere near their jurisdiction.

"The truth is, it's easy," said Miami police Maj. Jorge Colina, who oversees internal affairs for the area's biggest municipal police force. "You're hoping you don't get dispatched to a call ... But you could get a head start and be up on the expressway out of the city when they tell you, 'OK, have a good night.'"

To read the entire two-day Sun Sentinel investigation click here.