tip411 In The News

“An anonymous tip will put no one at risk. Failing to share what you know about a fatal shooting puts us all in danger, and you, too.”

There have been four fatal shootings in just over three months — including three in the past 10 days —  in Lancaster city. Police are seeking the public’s help in locating a suspect in one of them and identifying suspects in the other three.

In case you know anything and missed how to report what you saw or heard concerning recent shootings in Lancaster,  here’s how you can help to make our community safer for yourself, your family and everyone else.

— Call Lancaster Bureau of Police: 717-735-3300.

— Call Lancaster City-County CrimeStoppers, anonymously, if you wish: 800-322-1913.

— Submit a tip anonymously online.

— Dial 847-411 (TIP-411) to send a tip via text; begin the message with “LANCS,” then type your tip.

If a friend or acquaintance  mentions knowing something about one of the recent shootings, or if you believe he does, encourage that person to get in touch with police or CrimeStoppers.

“People with any information about any of these incidents, no matter how trivial they think it may be, need to come forward and share it with investigators,” Lt. Todd Umstead, of the Lancaster City Bureau of Police, said in an email Monday.

Read the full editorial from Lancaster Online.

tip411 In The News

IACP “New Product Showcase” Features tip411

Will you be attending IACP 2015 in Chicago this October?

We are honored to be listed as part of the IACP’s New Product Showcase, highlighting our work helping schools, as well as local and federal agencies, fight crime.

tip411 President Terry Halsch and members of our team will be at Booth #3619 sharing information about our products.

We hope you’ll stop by to learn about tip411 and how we can help your agency engage with the public, share information, and receive anonymous tips to make your community safer.

Learn more at tip411.com and follow us on social media @tip411CO and Facebook.com/tip411 to see how other agencies are benefiting from or system.

tip411 Admin Resources

Lewisville Police Offer “Exchange Zone,” Use tip411 to Share Information

The Lewisville Police Department in Lewisville, Texas recently announced they would be offering an “Exchange Zone” to help citizens exchange goods or for child custody exchanges in a safe area at the police department –  And they used a tip411 alert to share the news with their community:

Two marked parking spots have been designated in front of the Police Department’s main door as an “Exchange Zone” for citizens wanting a safe location to exchange goods bought or sold, or to perform child custody exchanges.  The area is under video surveillance. Lewisville Police Department encourages citizens to exercise good judgment and caution in their interaction with strangers, and bears no responsibility for the validity of the transactions conducted.     

The Police Department is located at 1187 W. Main St on the West end of the Lewisville Municipal Annex.     

Read the full alert here.

tip411 In The News

What happens when you text a tip to N.J. police?

There’s drug activity. A neighbor is committing insurance fraud.  There’s fear someone has been abused.

Do the right thing and report it to police via text message, or think twice?

Will the police track the text and turn up demanding more information?

Will the identity or phone number of the person providing the tip get out and criminals will track them down?

The answer to all is “no,” authorities said.

With the new “tip411” system introduced by the Salem County Prosecutor’s Office on Thursday, not even a subpoena can help.

Throughout New Jersey, police use different systems to ask for the public ‘s help in solving crimes, but many who have valuable information are still wary.

“We believe the public is our greatest law enforcement resource,” said Salem County Prosecutor John T. Lenahan Thursday.  “Tip411 allows a safe and secure way for community members to share important information with police without fear or retribution.  By providing this service to each department, citizens can communicate with their own department to collectively solve crimes in their communities.”

How sure can someone be that they will remain anonymous?

Chief of County Detectives Brian Facemyer said that when a text is sent via tip411, all identifying information is removed before the information is forwarded to individual police departments.

Subpoenas have even been issued in an attempt to find information on tipsters, but to no avail.

“Completely anonymous,” Pennsville Chief of Police Allen J. Cummings emphasized.

Read the rest of the story from NJ.com

tip411 In The News

NJ County Uses App to Submit Anonymous Tips to Police

In the hopes of helping police solve more crimes, a New Jersey county is implementing a new service allowing residents to submit text messages anonymously to law enforcement.

Salem County’s law enforcement now allows people to share information with police by sending text messages about crimes through an online tool called tip411.

Tip411 allows anyone with a cell phone to text tips to police, and then officers can respond back, creating a 100% anonymous conversation.

Using the free app, residents can send a tip to any Salem County law enforcement agency by using the keyword for the agency and their message/tip to 847411.

Read the rest of the story from NBC10.com