Crime Stoppers saw majority of public engagement on social media and app, data suggests
The annual general meeting of the Moose Jaw Crime Stoppers board outlined the program’s highlights from 2019, especially the seeming increase of public engagement from using social media.
Crime Stoppers received 214 tips in total last year, a slight dip from the year previous but still in the average range of the last few years. They also paid out $950 in tip rewards, although not all of those rewards were claimed by the recipients.
Cst. Sheldon MacNaughton, the Moose Jaw Police Service member handling the Crime Stoppers program in 2019, reported an increase in public engagement with the program, especially on social media.
The Crime Stoppers Facebook page published 20 posts last year, with the average number of people reached just over 20,000. There was a correlation between posts that utilized humour and the increase in interaction.
The program also launched a smartphone app as a new method of anonymously submitting tips, with 60 per cent of the total tips in 2019 being submitted through the app.
P3 Tips offers more anonymity for tipsters, as well as an opportunity for police members to make follow-up contact with the tipster after the tip is submitted for clarification or more details.
The app required the purchase of software from Anderson Software, which totaled $1,200 for the board. Crime Stoppers also solved its first crime using submitted footage from a passing citizen’s dashcam, installed Crime Stoppers posters in the holding cells at the MJPS, and installed two signs in the city.
MJPS Deputy Chief Rick Johns spoke during the meeting about the city’s rise in violent crime over the last few years, especially the increased prevalence of methamphetamines and cocaine within the city. “Whenever we see an increase in crime, we also hope that there’s going to be an increase in reporting of that crime. It helps us better do our jobs,” said Johns. “With
Crime Stoppers being anonymous and a good avenue for people to report to us, it gives us just another tool to be able to investigate these serious offences.” During the meeting, Johns also proposed the idea of creating a voluntary local registry of people who have security cameras or doorbell cameras installed on their property, as a potential database of information for future Crime Stoppers cases.
The board also received two donations from local groups in Moose Jaw during the meeting.
The Early Bird Lions Club presented a cheque for $800 to board president Lyle Johnson, and the ACT/UCT — who have been annual sponsors of the program since its inception — presented a cheque for $2,000. “We’ve supported this program from the onset because it gives something special to the community,” said ACT/ UCT president Mark Gilliland.
The continued success of the Crime Stoppers program is reliant on its relationship with the community, agreed all parties present at the AGM.
“Our chief here has often referred to Robert Peele about how ‘the police are the community and the community are the police,’ and I don’t think anything marries that better than Crime Stoppers,” said MacNaughton during his presentation. “We’ve got police members here and community members here and we’re working together to help this community.”
Moose Jaw Crime Stoppers began in 1984 and is one of 120 Crime Stoppers programs worldwide. Moose Jaw was the first municipality in Saskatchewan to create a local Crime Stoppers program.
The Crime Stoppers board is comprised of community members, with one MJPS representative. Cst. Josh MacNaughton will replace Cst. Sheldon MacNaughton as that representative beginning in 2020.