INSIDE CRIME STOPPERS
EVERYTHING YOU’VE WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT THE ORGANISATION THAT HELPS SOLVE CRIMES ACROSS THE WORLD, FROM DIRECTOR PETER PRICE
Tell us about your role.
I am a director of Crime Stoppers Australia. I am also the Director and CEO of Crime Stoppers NSW. I have been with Crime Stoppers for over 20 years. A typical week for me would be media interviews, stakeholder engagement activities, liaison with NSW Police on operational matters, and discussing campaign plans with the government.
What is the purpose of Crime Stoppers?
It’s simply to stop, solve and prevent crime. We run education campaigns on different crime types throughout the year with the aim to increase awareness of crimes, help the community prevent crimes and encourage reporting so we can help the police solve crimes.
How many calls do the contact centres get?
The majority of calls in Australia are coming through Crime Stoppers NSW, as we are the biggest state in the country. In 2020, Crime Stoppers collected 236,000 calls and made 6500 arrests. Of those 6500 arrests, 18,500 charges were laid.
What importance does the public play in solving crimes?
The public’s role in making a safer community is immeasurable. We rely on communities to report crime and take precautions to help prevent crime. They are the eyes and ears of the police, who can’t be everywhere. It is fundamental to a civilised society.
What happens after a crime is reported to Crime Stoppers?
When a crime is reported, we then analyse the information and see what other information in the database is similar to that. Then we start to put together a puzzle. So the information that comes in is just information, and that information has to be turned into intelligence, which is stage two. When intelligence is identified, it is briefed out to a police command to investigate.
What sort of information do the police want?
We take information on any kind of crime, whether it’s drugs, domestic violence, or online crimes initiated outside of Australia – it doesn’t matter. We don’t discriminate when it comes to crime. Any information, no matter how small, may be the missing piece of a puzzle needed to help solve a crime. You can report what you see, hear or suspect to Crime Stoppers 24/7, 365 days of the year by phone or online.
When should we call Triple Zero as opposed to Crime Stoppers?
You call Triple Zero (000) when it is a crime in progress or it’s life-threatening. And you call Crime Stoppers when you have information about a crime that has been committed, or you suspect or have information a crime may be committed. The important thing is when you contact Crime Stoppers, you don’t have to disclose your identity. We don’t need to know who you are – we just need to know what you know.
Do you have any memorable stories of cases solved through tip-offs?
There are many. In Adelaide, the case of a child’s body found in a suitcase was solved by a call to Crime Stoppers. In another case, a call to Crime Stoppers led to the arrest of a man who was charged with six counts of child pornography and had over 200,000 images and 500 videos of child abuse in his possession. This is why the public’s help is so important. I am currently working on a cyber education initiative and one of the guys on the advisory panel was molested as a child. His perpetrator was convicted through a tip-off to Crime Stoppers.
When it comes to cold cases, what kind of information from the public helps move an investigation along?
I always say the community should not be the gatekeepers of information, they should be the ones to relay information. You don’t know what the police need, and if you overhear something about a crime that was committed years ago it could be important. There is an old saying, “loose lips sink ships.” When a crime was committed a long time ago and it wasn’t solved,
people involved tend to relax and get back into a normal mode, and it can take just a slip of the tongue in one instance and that is all we need to catch a criminal.
What role does a financial reward play in cold cases?
Significant financial rewards of over a million [dollars] are life-changing to most people. So if you think you have some information that would lead to an arrest, your life could change, which is a significant incentive. We actually find a lot of people don’t want the money. Since the 9/11 attack in New York, there has been a global trend to not pay rewards because people have not asked for it. I think there is more of a community social conscience now than there was beforehand.
I live in a small town. If I call Crime Stoppers, could someone recognise my voice?
The Crime Stoppers contact centres around Australia are centralised, so you’re not calling your local police station. There is no chance that someone could recognise your voice.