When Crime Stoppers in the South Okanagan was set up in 1992, the service received around 50 crime tips a year.
Today, that number has increased to between 300 and 400 tips a year.
“Some days we get none; some days we get six,” said Al Sismey, regional Crime Stoppers coordinator.
The South Okanagan Similkameen Crime Stoppers covers communities from Summerland to Osoyoos and west to Princeton.
It is a non-police program. Information is received confidentially and passed on to police.
Sismey said tips are received anonymously and the identity of those giving information is not released.
“Anonymity has always been one of our pillars,” Sismey said. “We will go to the wall to protect a tipster.”
The tips have included information about drug activity, homicides, serious assaults, home invasions and human trafficking.
Many of the crimes are drug-related, he added.
“Drugs, whether we want to admit it or not, are the root cause of a lot of crimes.”
While police will investigate every tip they receive, the tips do not all lead to arrests. Still, he said the information can provide an important part to an investigation.
“Every tip doesn’t end up in a successful conclusion, but it ends up with information the police can use,” Sismey said.
In addition to the toll-free telephone line at 1-888-222-TIPS (8477) information can also be sent as a text message to SOSTIPS (274637) or online through the South Okanagan Similkameen Crime Stoppers website at sostips.ca.
