At our August meeting we were all encouraged to put this number into our mobiles by Russell Oaten,Chair of Dorset Crimestoppers. He gave a very revealing talk about Crimestoppers, relating its history and current use in detecting and preventing crime. The success of this national organisation is down to its reputation for complete anonimity and the use of modern technology which actually prevents any calls made to the number above from being traced.This allows people who do not wish to be identified to report crimes or other suspicious matters without getting involved with the authorities. As a result,the police can use the information in a variety of ways,often adding it to their own intelligence reports. Drugs,Trafficking and Child Pornography have all been reported via the system and numerous arrests are made. We were fascinated to hear that many instances of fear of forced marriage were coming to light. A girl suspecting she was going to be married against her wishes is able to report this or get a friend to do this for her. The authorities can act and prevent it,and the girl’s parents will never know where the information came from. Apparently technology is such that the number will not show up on mobile phones.
Twitter is increasingly being used to report crime,via Crimestoppers,currently 40% so the technology savvy young are making good use of the scheme. Russell’s talk was delivered with great humour helped by his knowledge gained as a police officer. We gave him a cheque for Crimestoppers which is a registered charity.