Value of Crime Stoppers

PUBLIC response to the appeal by Crime Stoppers, since its introduction four years ago, to assist in the solving of crimes, by reporting them under the cover of confidentiality, has resulted, inter alia, in nine kidnappings, 493 narcotics, 120 firearms, 43 murder and 17 sexual offences being solved. Initially, the response was relatively slow, but with public confidence growing in the system, along with increasing public revulsion at the rise in crime, there has been a marked increase in calls. Devrol Dupigny, General Manager of Crime Stoppers, stressed last Thursday at a Peronal Security Awareness Seminar organised by AmCham that the last month alone had witnessed a five-fold increase in the number of valid tips received by his organisation. for the month of July, up to the 23rd, CS received 393 calls including 249 tips as compared to 157 calls and 46 tips in the month beore. Apart from the motive of civic duty, CS has been the offering incentives in the form of rewards of up to $10,000, except in cases of kidnappings where the reward has recently been upped to $25,000. The assurance of confidentiality has also helped to win public confidence in the scheme.

Initial public resistance to reporting incidents of crimes to Crime Stoppers had been conditioned by allegations that some persons, who had made reports to the Police in the past with respect to the narcotics trade, murder and firearms, among other things, had their names passed on to the criminals, and in some cases had been reportedly threatened. The allegations, whether true or not, had been enough to frighten off many persons from doing their civic duty. The idea of Crime Stoppers, with its emphasis on confidentiality, had been designed to win the trust and cooperation of citizens in the battle against this dreadful scourge. It was the most practical and effective way of providing members of the public with an opportunity to assist in the fight against crime. A print and electronic media blitz, in which the principal thrust had been the insistence that telephone calls to the Crime Stoppers' hotline could not be traced; that there was no need to give the person at the other end the names and addresses of callers, and that individual ID numbers would be given, which could then be used for the collection of rewards for relevant convictions, had boosted needed confidence in the project.

And although the solving of nine kidnappings through reports to Crime Stoppers may appear modest in relation to the incidence of kidnappings over the past four years, what is of critical importance is that a start has been made. Hopefully, more citizens will be won over to the business-like approach of Crime Stoppers, and the firm assurance that confidentiality is indeed a fact, will lead to an increasing number of tip-offs. The response to Crime Stoppers has demonstrated that although the maintenance of law and order is primarily the responsibility of the Police, citizens have a not insignificant role to play in the critical effort to stem the rising tide of serious crime in our country. The call has been repeatedly made for every sector of our society to join in this struggle. Crime does not normally occur in remote and uninhabited areas of our country; it happens within the bosom of our society and very often within the view and detection of many. A call to Crime Stoppers can strike a telling blow.