Crime going on... Who you gonna call?... CRIMESTOPPERS!

WITH criminal elements waging a seemingly relentless assault upon the population of Trinidad and Tobago, there seems to be no one to whom the ordinary citizen can trust or turn to for help. However within this bitter strife, a band of brave soldiers have been doing their part to turn back the tide of crime and transform the country into a place “where the ordinary citizen regains confidence in the nation’s collective ability to combat and rid the scourge of crime”. This is the vision of CrimeStoppers Trinidad and Tobago (CSTT).

CSTT general manager Devrol Dupigny told Sunday Newsday the group is part of the CrimeStoppers International organisation which was born out of a 1976 shooting incident in Alberquerque, New Mexico. Information relayed to police by CrimeStoppers led to the arrest and conviction of two persons in connection with that crime. Today CrimeStoppers International has over 1,000 groups which operate within 18 countries. Dupigny indicated that CrimeStoppers was first launched in Trinidad and Tobago in 1999 in response to the Government’s belief that something needed to be done to deal with crime in the country. However the CSTT general manager stressed that since its inception, the organisation has always been “a registered non-profit organisation” and has steered clear of any involvement with the political directorate of the day. He said while National Security Minister Howard Chin Lee was present at CrimeStoppers’ re-launching on March 12, 2002, the only form of government interaction the group has is with the Police Service, in its capacity as an agency under Chin Lee’s portfolio. “I am not interested in profit. We are not interested in that,” Dupigny declared.

What the organisation is interested in, Dupigny continued, is finding meaningful ways to take the bite out of crime. To achieve this goal, CrimeStoppers has launched a four-pronged attack against crime. The first element involves the business community, upon which the organisation relies heavily for its financing in terms of operational aspects and providing reward money to tipsters’ whose information leads to the arrest and conviction of persons involved in criminal activities. The second involves the media, which Dupigny revealed is an area which CrimeStoppers intends to place greater emphasis upon within the near and distant future. He said that while CrimeStoppers has been operating in Trinidad and Tobago for the last four years, there are many people in the society who are unaware about the organisation, how it functions and how they can get involved in helping CSTT achieve its vision.

The police provide the third link in CrimeStoppers’ chain of command and ASP Wayne Richards is the group’s liaison with the Police Service. Dupigny said that Richards’ role is vital as he is able to sift out the legitmate calls from the prank ones. The final piece of the puzzle is the community and Dupigny admits that CrimeStoppers has had some difficulty convincing some sections of the population that any information they give will be confidential and their indentities would remain anonymous. Dupigny explained that calls from members of the public are received at CSTT’s centre by tele-operators who work 24 hours daily, seven days a week, 365 days a year. He said their job is to instil a level of confidence in the callers that the information they provide will be kept in the strictest of confidence. Dupigny stated that the tele-operators never ask the callers for their names or locations and have no means whereby they can trace the origin of the call.

Once persons call CrimeStoppers, they are given a control number and are asked to call back within 21 days. Dupigny said that if the caller’s information proves helpful, the caller is instructed to go into a ScotiaBank branch of his or her choice on a specific date and time. The maximum reward persons supplying helpful information is $10,000. The CSTT general manager said Richards makes all the arrangements with the respective bank operations manager and there is no breach of security when the reward is paid.

How successful has CrimeStoppers been since its phones starting ringing in 1999? Dupigny revealed that to date some 3,500 calls have been received by the organisation which have led to the seizure of $2.85 million worth of illegal narcotics, $40,000 worth of recovered property, the destruction of 15,000 marijuana trees, 180 persons arrested and 900 criminal cases cleared and solved.  The CSTT general manager said a look at the statistics, reveals that drugs, firearms and ammunition, larceny, fraud, sexual offences, murder and attempted murder are the major crimes which are called in to CrimeStoppers. Dupigny said the organisation has received calls concerning kidnapping and in one case, information received exclusively by CrimeStoppers proved crucial in the arrest and conviction of those involved. Asked how frequent calls about kidnapping were received, Dupigny replied that their frequency was much lower than the other categories of crime which are called into CrimeStoppers’ 800-TIPS and 800-STOP lines.

The CSTT general manager noted the recent formation of the Guardian Angels’ group by Barataria/San Juan MP Dr Fuad Khan. While he steered clear about the reasons for that group’s creation, Dupigny said: “CrimeStoppers has certain mechanisms which have worked locally and internationally and there is no merit in one group trying to outdo one another.” Asked what were CrimeStoppers’ future plans, Dupigny disclosed that in March, a strategic plan outlining the organisation’s plans from 2003 to 2007 was developed. The cost to implement the objectives for this year is $7.7 million and Dupigny sees this figure slowing decreasing over time as more organisations come on board. He stated that approaches are being made individually and collectively to the business community to sell the basic tenets of the plan and thus far, the feedback has been positive. Some aspects of the plan include the creation of a Junior CrimeStoppers group to educate young people and address the problem of petty crimes in the nation’s secondary schools and the formation of corporate support group programmes.

Dupigny  said CSTT is also looking at developing partnerships which businesses such as fast food outlets and gas stations, whose employees could serve as eyes and ears for possible criminal activities in the areas they operate in. The CSTT manager also disclosed that while “there is a move afoot” to obtain more funding from the Government, the organisation would never compromise itself by allowing Government direct involvement in its daily operations. Dupigny reiterated that while CrimeStoppers’ mechanisms have been successful to date, the organisation is always striving to build upon them and so fulfil its vision and stated mission “to combat crime by creating the premier flagship private sector mechanism through which every citizen can participate anonymously and successfully”. He expressed special praise for to the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce, ScotiaBank, BWIA and Caribbean Home for the invaluable support they have provided to CrimeStoppers over the years.