Author: sspencer0602

Multiple Illinois agencies have partnered with tip411 to drive the reduction in crime in their communities by improving citizen engagement, increasing awareness, and providing quicker intervention. 

Peoria school, Peoria Police Department (278 sworn officers), and Rockford Police Department (246 sworn officers) have all seen success in closing cases and making arrests with the assistance of anonymous tips through the tip411 tool.

tip411 is a tool that is designed to facilitate anonymous reporting of tips that aims to empower community residents to share information directly with law enforcement and provides a safe, secure way to make those reports. 

Since the introduction of tip411 in the Peoria community, tips have increased by 300% compared to their old tipline and Rockford PD have made arrests due to information provided by community members through their tip411 tool.

Director of School Safety for Peoria public schools Demario Boone provided an example of the tip line in action.

“They saw a person who was identified as possibly one of our students on Instagram with a firearm. [We] found out it was a fake B-B gun, that was still removed from the home. I was able to get the tip, identify who they were and an officer was at the house in 20 minutes and we were able to close the case,” said Boone.

The public can submit anonymous tips to the Peoria PD by texting “PEORIAPD” and the tip information to 847411. The public can also use the PEORIAPD Tip mobile app, powered by tip411, to view community alerts and submit anonymous tips. The PEORIAPD Tip app can be downloaded for free at the iTunes and Google Play App Store.

The public can also submit anonymous tips to Peoria Public Schools by texting “PEORIAPS” to 847411 or download the app for free at the iTunes and Google Play App Store.

Additionally, citizens can submit anonymous text tips via their cell phone to the Rockford Police Department by texting the keyword “RPDTIP” and their message/tip to 847411. Tips can also be submitted using the Rockford PD mobile app, developed by tip411, which is available to download for free from the Google Play Store and the iTunes App Store. 

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• WREX.com: Anonymous tip leads Rockford Police to arrest another suspect in October 2022 death of woman
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Hutto Police Department (48 sworn officers) have requested that the surrounding community continue to get involved to help reduce the number of vehicle break-ins throughout the city, specifically Limmer Loop, involving multiple suspects.

A quick-thinking citizen saw the suspicious activity and submitted an anonymous tip through the Hutto PD app, developed by tip411, that relayed information about the break-ins directly to an officer.

This anonymous tip provided officers a base to gather useful information about the suspects. 

Hutto PD stated the “area continues to be a target for traveling groups of people with the sole purpose of stealing property from your vehicle.”

The public can submit anonymous tips to Hutto PD by texting “HUTTOPD” and the tip information to 847411. The public can also use the HUTTOPD Tip mobile app, powered by tip411, to view community alerts and submit anonymous tips. The HUTTOPD Tip app can be downloaded for free at the iTunes and Google Play App Store.

Read More:

• Hutto Police Department asking for public’s help after multiple vehicle break-ins
• Hutto police say WilCo being targeted for vehicle break-ins

Winter Garden, FL Police Department (98 sworn officers) has invested in new technology where residents can submit anonymous, non-emergency tips at any time through the crime-fighting tool tip411. 

“Being able to report crime tips to police anonymously and conveniently through an app or via text or city website is beneficial to the community while being helpful to police, and in some cases, may prevent crime before it happens,” City Manager Jon C. Williams said.

tip411 utilizes its technology to protect residents’ identity and contact information to keep tips anonymous. 

Police Chief Steve Graham indicates that WGPD representatives have been in discussions regarding the new tool for months. 

“It resulted because we have a lot of information that’s out in the neighborhoods in the community that’s not getting to us,” he said. “Basically, we’re not getting the actual intelligence that we could. There are a few possible reasons for that. It could be that in certain neighborhoods they don’t want to be seen talking to the police or they’re afraid of retribution for talking to the police or providing information on a crime. They may not want to be identified as the complaint or a witness, and they may not want to go to court later or testify against or about something that’s going to make them uncomfortable. This provides an outlet where they can be completely anonymous. We can also interact with residents and get more information from them through this service.”

The community can sign up for the tool’s push notifications, so if the department is looking for something, it can send the information to the people who have subscribed.

“I would hope that by sharing more information we can be more effective and be more responsive,” he said. “We’re pretty good at solving crimes, but this would just make us better.”

Winter Garden resident Zach Waxler heard about the Winter Garden PD app recently and thinks it’s fantastic.

“I created my account within the app, and submitting a tip is very quick and easy,” he said. “It simply asks you for a subject, location, and description of what you saw. I feel this is going to help our community engage with our great law enforcement officers in a much more simplistic way. It is sometimes intimidating calling the non-emergency number for little things, but now you can quickly submit a thought, idea, or a problem and it will be seen by our police department. Our city and our police department is here for us. This is them showing they want our feedback and they want to hear our concerns.”

The public can submit anonymous tips to Winter Garden PD by texting “WGPD” and the tip information to 847411. The public can also use the WGPD Tip mobile app, powered by tip411, to view community alerts and submit anonymous tips. The WGPD Tip app can be downloaded for free at the iTunes and Google Play App Store.

Read More:

• See a crime? Report it at tip411

 

Washington County, TN Sheriff’s Office (86 sworn officers) received an anonymous tip through the tip411 tool that resulted in the discovery of an illegal moonshine operation in Johnson City.

The tip resulted in an immediate investigation of a specific property. 

According to Sheriff Keith Sexton, deputies cited an individual who was found on the premises with the manufacturing of alcoholic beverages, possession of a still, and unlawful storage of liquor for sale.

The liquor manufacturing equipment, along with 81 quarts of product, were seized and transported to WCSO.

The public can submit anonymous tips to the Washington County, TN Sheriff’s Office by texting “WCSO” and the tip information to 847411. The public can also use the WCSO Tip mobile app, powered by tip411, to view community alerts and submit anonymous tips. The WCSO Tip app can be downloaded for free at the iTunes and Google Play App Store.

Read More:

• WCSO investigators confiscate still, moonshine in Johnson City

Rockland District Attorney’s Office partners with tip411, a mobile tip tool that provides an easy way for residents and citizens to directly engage with law enforcement that helps reduce and fight crime while remaining anonymous.

The public is encouraged to download the RocklandCo DA tip411 tool that goes beyond sharing anonymous tips. 

The tool also provides ways to receive alerts, access information, and much more to keep the community safe. 

The public can submit anonymous tips to the Rockland County DA by texting “ROCKLANDCODA” and the tip information to 847411. The public can also use the RocklandCo DA Tip mobile app, powered by tip411, to view community alerts and submit anonymous tips. The RocklandCo DA Tip app can be downloaded for free at the iTunes and Google Play App Store.

Read More:

• Help Fight Crime