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2017 a big year for regional Crime Stoppers branch

January 15, 2018   ·   0 Comments

By Mike Pickford

2017 was something of a record-breaking year for Crime Stoppers of Simcoe-Dufferin-Muskoka, with the local non-profit organization helping area police towards 281 individual arrests and the seizing of more than $5.5 million worth of drugs.

Speaking with the Citizen last week, OPP Constable Leslie Woodley credited Crime Stoppers’ increased presence on social media for improving public awareness of its program. As police co-ordinator for the local branch, Cst. Woodley noted it had been a successful year for Crime Stoppers.

“There has been an increase for sure in almost every category. We believe that an increased social media presence is helping with the awareness of our program,” Cst. Woodley said. “We have been working hard to increase followers and to post local crimes to increase the engagement from the community and media and it seems to be successful so far.”

In total, Crime Stoppers Simcoe-Dufferin-Muskoka (SDM) received 2,391 tips last year, up from 1,802 in 2016. There were 116 more arrests made in 2017 from the year before, while the number of charges laid more than doubled – up to 796 last year from 389 in 2016. At final count, Crime Stoppers SDM paid out just over $28,000 in rewards in 2017.

Established close to three decades ago, Crime Stoppers of Simcoe-Dufferin-Muskoka provides a platform for members of the public to “safely, securely and anonymously” report information about a crime or potential crime, says Cst. Woodley. Callers are never required to reveal their identities, make a statement or provide testimony in court and even the slightest piece of information can lead to a cash reward of up to $2,000.

“Crime Stoppers assists citizens in making a worthwhile contribution to stopping or solving crime, without fear of retaliation or involvement in a lengthy legal proceeding,” a media release from Crime Stoppers states.

Since its inception close to three decades ago, Crime Stoppers of SDM has received 59,742 tips, which in turn have led to 4,572 arrests. Over that period, police have seized just over $70 million worth of drugs in the region, while also recovering $12.5 million worth of property.

“Crime Stoppers is an incredible tool to police. Sometimes the information provided anonymously from a Crime Stoppers tipster is the final piece of the puzzle needed to solve a crime, and other times it may be the first piece of the puzzle when no other clues were available,” Cst. Woodley said.

She added, “We believe that this is a team effort and we are working with the police, the media and the community in the fight against crime!”

Crime Stoppers of Simcoe-Dufferin-Muskoka services a geographical area encompassing more than 110,000 square kilometres and 530,000 residents. The organization can be reached 24 hours a day, seven days a week at 1-800-222-8477 or online at tipsubmit.com and crimestopperssdm.com. Crime Stoppers can also be found on Facebook and Twitter by searching ‘CrimeSDM’.

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