BARRIE -- The provincial government is investing $450,000 over the next two years to help keep the Crime Stoppers tip line in operation 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The announcement was made at York Regional Police Headquarters Thursday morning.
“Police services across this country rely on Crime Stoppers to help them solve crime each and every day,” YRP Police Chief Eric Jolliffe said, adding that this is a “significant announcement.”
The Crime Stoppers program first started in New Mexico in 1976, and by 1983 it was in Calgary before making its way to Ontario by the mid-1980s.
The program is simple. Anyone can call in a tip to the police anonymously and could receive up to a $2,000 reward.
Dave Forster is with Crime Stoppers and said they receive about 400,000 tips every year in Ontario alone. About 40 percent of those tips are considered helpful.
Last year in York Region, the Crime Stoppers tip line received 696 tips resulting in 89 arrests with just over $14,000 paid to tipsters.
The Simcoe, Dufferin and Muskoka chapter had almost 2,500 tips that resulted in 80 arrests with just over $10,000 paid out.
There are 39 Crime Stoppers programs in Ontario that are all linked to the 1-800-222-TIPS hotline.
Many people are also now turning to online reporting to make anonymous tips.
