At your service since 1976

Thirty-three years ago, Canadian-born police detective Greg MacAleese was assigned to investigate a robbery gone afoul that resulted in the shooting of a young College student working part-time at a gas station in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Frustrated, by the lack of solid investigation leads in the case, MacAleese saw two things preventing people in the community from sharing information about the crime: a valid fear of reprisal, and pervasive public apathy.

This crime occurred at dusk in a well-travelled neighbourhood. MacAleese knew that someone other than the killers had knowledge that could crack the case.

So, he contacted the media and staged a televised re-enactment of the crime. To overcome public apathy, he offered a cash reward from his own pocket. To prevent reprisals, he set up a totally anonymous phone line. Sure enough, within a week, the case was solved.

The idea of the community, the media and the police working together to solve a crime like this spread rapidly. Today, there are nearly 1,000 programs worldwide, including Canada, the United States, Britian, South Africa, Guam and Australia.

In Ontario, there are 39 Crime Stoppers programs, linked together by the national toll-free Crime Stoppers telephone number:

1-800-222-TIPS (8477)