An anonymous text led to two arrests and the recovery of a gun and drugs, Atlantic City police said.
Jorge Herrera, 18, of Atlantic City, had a loaded handgun and marijuana when police arrested him after witnessing a drug deal Wednesday, Sgt. Kevin Fair said.
A text about drug sales to the city’s tip411 anonymous texting service led Detectives Will Herrerias and Jeffereson Rivera to the 2300 of Arctic Avenue, where they saw Herrara and another man in a drug deal, according to the report.
Jose Diaz, 38, of Atlantic City, left in a vehicle and was immediately stopped and taken into custody after he was found in possession of marijuana, Fair said.
The detectives then saw Herrera leaving a residence and took him into custody.
He was found in possession of a handgun loaded with hollow-point ammunition, marijuana and drug paraphernalia, Fair said. A search of his residence turned up more marijuana for a total of 210 grams.
They also recovered a scale, baggies and $503 in cash.
Diaz was charged with possession and released on a summons.
Herrera is jailed on charges of possession of a controlled dangerous substance, possession with intent to distribute, possession with intent to distribute in a school zone, possession of a weapon while committing a drug offense, unlawful possession of a weapon, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, possession of hollow-point ammunition and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Anonymous tips can be by texting tip411 (847411) beginning the text with ACPD.
The Bismarck Police Department’s new anonymous tip program has yielded more than 100 tips since its launch on Jan. 1.
Officer Katie Horn said the tip411 app allows users to provide tips quickly but remain anonymous if they wish. Within a couple days of its launch, information received through the program helped officers locate a runaway. Tipsters also have provided information about shoplifters, and about 30 tips have been received on an active felony fraud case dating back to 2018.
The tip411 program replaces Crime Stoppers, which the department stopped using when tip411 was launched.
Tipsters can use tip411 three ways. They can text information directly to tip411, submit information to tip411 through the BPD website or use the app to send a message. Photos and videos can be attached to those messages. The message and text methods are quicker and easier, Horn said. Text messages can be sent to 847411. The keyword is BISPD.
tip411 interviewed Sergeant Kevin Fair of the Atlantic City, New Jersey Police Department. Here’s what he had to say about tip411 at ACPD:
Q: Tell us about your community and the Atlantic City Police Department (how many residents, how many sworn, etc.).
A: Atlantic City has about 39,000 residents. However, we receive around 24 million visitors a year.
Q: How is tip411 administered in your department (responsibilities, protocols, etc.)?
A: tip411 is monitored by personnel in our Communications Bureau and Surveillance Center on a 24/7 basis. There are also select officers that receive tips as they come in.
Q: How has the tip411 system aided your department?
A: tip411 has been a tremendous asset for us. We advertise it to our residents at community events and to our local businesses. In our first full year of use, we received a little over 200 tips. In 2018, we received over 4,200.
Q: You get LOTS of tips, what have you done to promote your tip411 system to make sure residents know about it and use it?
A: We have flyers available during community events. We will always routinely use the mobile app while giving presentations. We allow residents to see what we see, because some are skeptical that it’s anonymous. Also, at the end of every news release, the tip411 information is contained in the last paragraph. Information on tip411 will be provided at certain crime scenes.
Q: Any notable tips/arrests credited to tip411 that come to mind?
A: Arrests are frequently made off of tips that are received. Many of the tips are for narcotic related activity. The tips will aid in our detective’s investigations.
Q: You always make great use of our alerting feature – what do you typically send alerts out about and approximately how many residents do you reach with them?
A: We send alerts about weather events and general information from the police department that the public needs to know about. That would include; news releases, hirings/promotions, events, etc.
Q: The Atlantic City Police Department has used tip411 for many years, why is it so important for you to have anonymous tip capabilities? A: We police an environment where we need an anonymous service to aid us in our fight against crime. We will get information from witnesses that we may not get otherwise. This has allowed us to solve more than 75 percent of our non-fatal shooting investigations over the last several years.
Q: The department is about to launch our new tip411 Select option – which allows your information to be translated into 40 languages – why is this so important to APD and the communities you serve?
A: Atlantic City is a melting pot of different nationalities who speak a litany of languages. Being able to interact with particular segments of the community that we would not have otherwise is definitely a great advantage.
Below is just one recent example of Atlantic City Police being aided by tip411 to solve a violent crime, then using their tip411 alert feature to share that success with the media and public.
The tip411 app is designed to help you better connect to law enforcement, find information, view alerts, and submit anonymous tips. It is now available to download in your app store.
“There are a lot more eyes and ears out there other than just deputies and law enforcement that can give us information,” said Effingham County Sheriff, Jimmy McDuffie. “It allows residents to not only submit tips, but access agency alerts. We have a crime mapping program that’s on it. When we do any alerts, they’ll go out on the Tip411 program, Facebook, and Twitter.”
The Effingham County School District has also implemented tip411.
Bismarck Police Department is making some big changes for the new year. Crime Stoppers is out, and a new, anonymous text tip system will take its place.
The new system, Tip411 will be used starting January 1st.
Tip411 allows users to text the police department, and officers can actually respond. So you can have a back and forth conversation, anonymously, to explain what you’ve witnessed.
You can even attach photos or video to your tip.
Bismarck Police Department Officer Lynn Wanner adds, “Because we’re making it a lot easier for people to use, especially on the go; I mean if they’re out somewhere and they see something it’s much easier to text in a tip while it’s going on, rather than having to make a phone call or wait to get back and get on a website and use it. So, we’re hoping this really increases the amount of tips that come in that are useful to us.”
The text exchange works on the app, or you can text directly to the Tip411 number: 847-411. Start your message with keyword BISPD.
Search Bismarck PD in the App Store or the Google Play Store. It’s available today.
