BANNER YEAR FOR CRIME STOPPERS

No stoned goes unturned once Chatham-Kent Crime Stoppers gets a hold of it.

And that simple truth, says Det. Const. Tom Harris, is the reason the
non-profit, civilian-run organization can boast an 85 per cent success rate
for the year 2000.

Indeed, Harris notes 547 charges were laid as a result of 644 tips on
crimes ranging from drug trafficking to break and enters to animal abuse.
In addition, $612,954 worth of property was recovered and nearly $5 million
in drugs were seized.

Those statistics, says Harris, are something to crow about.

"Those numbers are exceptional," says Harris. "They speak a lot about the
community in that it1s obvious people are keeping an eye on their
neighbourhoods."

The Chatham-Kent program is so successful in fact that it has become the
envy of neighbouring programs across Southwestern Ontario.

"It's a program that most people are jealous of because we do it so well."

Of course, Harris adds, credit for the program's success must be shared by
the police forces involved, the local media and Chatham-Kent communities.

"Statistics have been sky high since 1997," says Harris. "People realize
it1s not just Chatham. We get quite a bit of calls from Wallaceburg. In the
last 18 months, it1s really started to pick up."

And, says Harris, neither of the two officers who man the phones ever
disregard a lead since sometimes a seemingly trivial tip ends up putting
the finishing touch on an investigation that had been under way for some time.

Better yet, says Harris, the anonymity offered by Crime Stoppers means
callers are often more candid than they would be if they knew a court
appearance could be necessary in the future.

"I remember we had this one call where the guy asked, 'can a drug dealer
turn in another drug dealer'" says Harris with a laugh. The answer, of
course, was "yes."

Some say the "reward" aspect of the program is its main draw, but Harris
notes one-third of rewards are never collected.

"A lot of people call in because they don't want crime in their
neighbourhoods," says Harris, adding a total of $9,500 in rewards were
handed out in the year 2000 whereas $5,473,291 worth of stolen or illegal
goods were taken off the streets.

Plus, says Harris, a new program introduced in co-operation with local
radio stations this past year has resulted in a number of stolen vehicles
being returned to their rightful owners as the description and plate number
of missing cars and trucks are immediately reported on the air.

"We've had a lot of good success with it," says Harris.

Property seized by police as a result of a Crime Stoppers' tip is either
returned to its rightful owner, the insurance company where a claim was
filed or is forfeited. Seized drugs are either incinerated at Ridgetown
College or shipped to the Bureau of Dangerous Drugs in Ottawa for destruction.

Taking drugs off the Chatham-Kent streets and returning stolen goods are
among the reasons the Crime Stoppers program has proven so successful, says
Harris.

"We pass along every piece of information we get to the appropriate
enforcement agency," he says. "We can1t ever think OEthere is nothing here."