ABOUT CRIMESTOPPERS

Routinely the police department issues press releases ending with “Anyone who has knowledge of this crime please call the Iowa City Police Department.” This rarely results in anyone actually calling us with information that leads to an arrest.

Local police departments benefit from the CrimeStoppers program. It breaks through the barriers, giving people the opportunity to provide information without directly speaking to police or having to testify in court. Most often, police need information that allows them to zero in on a suspect or criminal operation such as a drug trafficking network.

How does CrimeStoppers work?

There is always someone who has information that can help solve crime. Those are the people who can call CrimeStoppers anonymously and provide a tip that will help investigators identify who is responsible. In any investigation, police and other law enforcement agencies encounter individuals who will not directly provide information. The three key reasons are:

• Fear of reprisal
• An attitude of apathy
• Reluctance to get involved

CrimeStoppers breaks through these barriers by giving people the opportunity to provide information without directly speaking to police or having to testify in court. Obviously investigators need witnesses to help prove their case in court, but most importantly they need information that allows them to zero in on a suspect or a criminal operation such as a drug trafficking network. Tips to CrimeStoppers do not give police evidence they require to arrest an individual but puts them on the right track to solve crime. A cash reward from CrimeStoppers also motivates some people to call anonymously with information that will be vital to investigators.

Today there are some 1,200 CrimeStoppers programs in communities around the world that take tips to assist investigators to solve crimes including homicides, sexual assaults, drug trafficking operations and robberies, just to name a few. Programs have also received information that has prevented school shootings and criminal acts by terrorist organizations.

CrimeStoppers programs are operated as not-for-profit and are managed by a volunteer board of directors who take responsibility for fundraising and paying rewards to individuals who anonymously call with information that helps solve a crime.

Rewards are paid for tips that lead to the arrest of people committing illegal criminal activity, and to date CrimeStoppers statistics show a conviction rate of some 95 percent. Most jurisdictions, with CrimeStoppers, utilize an independent board to determine how much a caller should receive as the reward.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Terry Brennan
Geoff C. Emmel
Patrick Ford
Dorothy M. Maher
Dee Miller
Steve Pajunen
Tom Toner
Dan Uphoff
Kevin Werner

Iowa City Area CrimeStoppers
is a nonprofit 501(c)(3)
organization.