LAURINBURG — Scotland Crimestoppers launched in November 2021 and since then there have been dozens of tips that have led investigators to numerous arrests in cases.
According to Capt. Chris Young with the Laurinburg Police Department, in 2022 there were 95 tips made through Crimestoppers with 11 arrests.
“With those arrests, we paid out over $1,700 in rewards to our tipsters,” Young said. “We also recovered four stolen firearms, over $4,000 of stolen property, seized over $9,000 worth of drugs and over $500 in currency for a total of over $14,026 recovered solely based on tips.”
Scotland Crimestoppers is a 100% anonymous tip line where individuals call in tips for everything from wanted individuals or various crimes in the community. If the tip leads to an arrest, the tipster can receive up to $1,000.
The process for receiving money begins when the tipster calls or submits their initial tip and they’re given a specific identification number, similar to a PIN number. That number is used after an arrest is made, the tipster can check back and use that number to identify themselves as the original tipster then they’re able to move forward in receiving the money.
“I’m looking forward to increasing our numbers, especially with our first year with the P3 program,” Young said. “We’ve had a successful year and we’re looking forward to 2023. Since we’ve had the P3 program this year, of those tips that came in 63% were from electronic devices.”
The website and mobile app will allow users to log in through a secure network and submit their tips which will allow law enforcement to receive it quicker. The system will also allow the tipster to correspond directly with law enforcement while still remaining 100% anonymous.
“Some tips are from people who are expressing their personal beliefs instead of providing actual investigative leads for law enforcement,” Young said. “But to those who provided useful information on tips and who provided good information on tips, thank you. The results have led to arrests because of the accurate and useful information they provided.”
You can leave a tip by calling 910-266-8146, visiting the website at www.scotlandcountycs.com, or downloading the free P3 Tips app. All information submitted through Scotland Crimestoppers will remain anonymous and tipsters will receive a cash reward if their tip leads to an arrest.