Crimestoppers reaches 100,000 arrests

It’s a great day when I hear how us crime-fighters are winning in the fight against crime. Imagine my joy then, when I heard that anonymous information passed on to Crimestoppers has led to 100,000 criminals being arrested and charged!

That’s an average of 21 people being arrested and charged every single day! This total includes 887 people that were arrested and charged for murder, over £189 million worth of drugs being seized and the recovery of over £112 million worth of goods. Boy, am I pleased to know I’ve got Crimestoppers on side!

The charity, which has been running for 22 years, has just reached this incredible milestone. I am only too familiar with the difficulties we face against the criminals so a big pat on the back for Crimestoppers from one crime-fighter to another. A huge thank you must also go to all those fantastic people who contacted Crimestoppers with information about crimes - without these people this amazing feat would never have been possible.

We may be winning the fight, but it is far from won. Remember, if you have information about a crime, please contact Crimestoppers anonymously by calling 0800 555 111 or through the secure online form.

Crimestoppers: fighting crime in your community

Have you ever wondered how Crimestoppers works or what successes we have had? Northern Ireland Crimestoppers has made a film about the charity and some cases we have helped solve.

Make sure you watch it to learn more about the charity and how it is helping local communities all over the UK.

Myth busters: Crimestoppers isn't Crimewatch

When I tell people I blog for Crimestoppers, some of the most common conversations that follow are along the lines of...

"Do you ever get to appear on TV?"
"Huh?"
"You know, on TV - have you ever been on it?"
"No... Well, I think as a child I used to climb on our black and white one from time to time... But I haven't been on it in a Barbara Windsor kind of way. Why?"
"I just thought you might have; blogging for the TV show Crimestoppers and all."
"Well, blogging tends to be more of an Internet thing and Crimestoppers isn't a TV show, it's an independent charity."
"But Crimestoppers is a TV show too, right? I've seen it on BBC1 before."
"No, that's Crimewatch. Crimestoppers is completely separate from Crimewatch. We run the 0800 555 111 number through which people can anonymous pass on information about crime. Crimewatch is a TV show that shows reconstructions of unsolved crimes."
"Oh.. so I don't suppose you know Kirsty Young then?"
"Well no, she's the host of Crimewatch."

While I am a big fan of Crimewatch, it does frustrate me when people confuse it with Crimestoppers. We perform important but very different functions. As a result of information passed to Crimestoppers, 19 people are arrested and charged everyday and every four days someone is arrested for murder.

Next time you’re watching Crimewatch (it’s on this Thursday 12 November), mention to anyone you’re with that it is separate from Crimestoppers and hopefully the word will start to spread.

A Halloween costume I won't be trying

I always find the week after Halloween a little sad, as it means it will be another year before the next one comes around. I love thinking up witty and original costumes and love spotting costume trends. Now that Halloween has passed, the only costume trend I'll be seeing is Santa suits and they're not my style.

This week I read an article in the paper about a man who took his quest to find an original Halloween costume too far...

James Miller, a student from Ohio, USA, went out for Halloween dressed up as a breathalyser. While wearing his costume James proceeded to drink and then drive home the wrong way down a one way street. Police stopped and used a real breathalyser on James to discover he was well over the limit. Looking at a photo of James, you can see that he was definitely in no state to be driving a car.

It's lucky the police caught James before he had an accident - drink driving is a crime for good reason, it is dangerous and irresponsible.

In the six months to September, Crimestoppers received nearly 3,000 calls about drink drivers.
Rates of drink-driving tend to go up in the months leading up to Christmas. This festive season make sure you not only watch your alcohol consumption if you are driving, but also be aware that there might be dangerous drivers on the road.

How to get arrested: Report your own drugs as stolen to the police

From April to September this year Crimestoppers received 25,517 pieces of useful information about drugs offences from across the UK. This information led to 2,421 drugs cases being solved. That said, sometimes law enforcement don't need our help to solve crimes - the criminals do it for us!

A 54 year-old lady from Brant Township in Michigan, USA called police to tell them that her marijuana plants had be stolen. Officers responded to the call and arrested the woman on drugs manufacturing charges.

Detective Sgt. Randy F. Pfau, who worked on the case, said that it was the first time he can remember someone reporting their stolen drugs to the police.