Crime Stoppers’ FAQs

HOW CAN A PERSON CALL OR CONTACT CRIME STOPPERS?

(1) Crime Stoppers can be accessed from any phone just by calling 234-PARA (7272). Your calls will always be answered, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Crime Stoppers NEVER uses caller ID and no calls are EVER recorded.

(2) If you have a Verizon cell phone all you have to do is call (*11), star 11. Verizon pays for your call and there is no charge to you.

(3) People wishing to leave tip information with Crime Stoppers can also submit tips online on the Crime Stoppers website at www.nmicrimestoppers.com. Submitting tips online means that you can also send a photo with your online tip.

(4) If you live on Tinian or Rota all you have to do is call 234-7272. Your phone call will be paid for and the Crime Stoppers number does not appear on your phone bill.

IF MY PHONE CALLS ARE ALWAYS GOING TO BE ANSWERED, WHO ACTUALLY ANSWERS THE PHONE?

Crime Stoppers has partnered with a company called Alternative Answers in Bolton, Ontario, Canada to answer our phone after the second ring. After the second ring your call is automatically transferred to Alternative Answers in Canada. Alternative Answers takes over 14,000 calls per month for over 100 different Crime Stoppers programs.

It is also “very doubtful” that anyone in Canada is going to recognize your voice.

These calls are all free to the callers. Crime Stoppers pays for all fees and phone charges.

IF SOMEONE IN CANADA ANSWERS MY CALL, HOW DOES CRIME STOPPERS GET THE TIP INFORMATION?

The information is faxed to Crime Stoppers from Canada. Crime Stoppers knows nothing of the identity of the caller.

IF I SUBMIT A TIP ONLINE IS IT POSSIBLE FOR SOMEONE TO FIND OUT WHERE THE TIP CAME FROM?

No. Crime Stoppers has partnered with Crime Stoppers Online in Pueblo, Colorado to provide this service for us. When you submit your online tip your tip goes to Pueblo, Colorado. Crime Stoppers Online receives the tip and stores it on their computer server in encrypted form. Crime Stoppers, using Crime Stoppers Online Software, queries the computer in Colorado and the tip is received over the internet from them. These ARE NOT E-MAIL Tips. E-Mail tips are not secure. Internet encrypted tips ARE secure.

CAN TIPS BE SUBMITTED TO CRIME STOPPERS IN A FOREIGN LANGUAGE?

Yes they can. Crime Stoppers has partnered with a company in Monterey, California called Language Line Services. Language Line will translate calls in over 150 different foreign languages.

HOW DOES CRIME STOPPERS RECEIVE A TIP IN A FOREIGN LANGUAGE?

The tip again comes to us in English as a faxed written document from Alternative Answers in Canada. This is how it works: The call comes from the CNMI (Saipan, Tinian, and Rota) and is answered in Canada. Once they realize the caller is a non-English speaker Canada calls Language Line in California. A 3-way conference call is established and the information from the caller is translated into English.

This service is also free to the caller. Crime Stoppers pays all fees and cost associated with the call.

IS CRIME STOPPERS A PART OF THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY?

No it is not. The NMI Crime Stoppers Program is a private program run by a civilian Board of Directors who are not in the public law enforcement field. The NMI Crime Stoppers Program is a chartered non-profit program registered with the CNMI Office of Corporations.

Because Crime Stoppers needs to work very closely with law enforcement agencies the Crime Stoppers Coordinator is usually a member of the Department of Public Safety or some other law enforcement agency. The Crime Stoppers Coordinator does just that, they coordinate the distribution of the tip information to the appropriate agency.

DO POLITICIANS SIT ON BOARD AS CRIME STOPPERS BOARD MEMBERS?

Again, Crime Stoppers is a civilian program operated by civilians from the business community. No politicians or law enforcement personnel are Board members.

Crime Stoppers is a non-profit community operated program with strong interaction with law enforcement and the media.

WHY IS THE CRIME STOPPERS COORDINATOR A POLICE OFFICER?

The NMI Crime Stoppers Program, as do other Crime Stoppers programs, usually selects a police officer to be the coordinator as the coordinator is the liaison between the civilian Crime Stoppers Board and all law enforcement agencies.

The coordinator does not have to be a law enforcement person.

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENT BETWEEN AN “INFORMANT” AND A “TIPSTER?”

An “informant” is usually an individual who’s identity is known to a law enforcement agency and works for a law enforcement agency in some capacity other than an actual law enforcement officer. An “informant” is usually paid by a law enforcement agency to provide them with information.

A “tipster” is someone who calls Crime Stoppers and provides information about a crime or crimes. The identity of all “tipsters” always remains anonymous as Crime Stoppers never asks the “tipster” to identify themselves.

When a “tipster” calls Crime Stoppers they are given a code number. The caller is only known to Crime Stoppers by that code number.

HOW CAN SOMEONE IDENTIFY CRIME STOPPERS TIPSTERS?

They cannot. Since the identity of the tipster is unknown to Crime Stoppers, Crime Stoppers cannot reveal the identity of a tipster.
The NMI Crime Stoppers Program has taken this a step further and introduced legislation that prevents anyone from obtaining information from Crime Stoppers records. The identity of the tipster is not in Crime Stoppers records since their identities are unknown anyway.

Also included in the Crime Stoppers legislation is a clause that makes it a felony, punishable by both fine and/or imprisonment, for any Crime Stoppers Board member, coordinator, or anyone else associated with Crime Stoppers to reveal the identity of a tipster.
Calls answered in Canada and tips submitted online to the Crime Stoppers website further protect the identity of callers because no one from Saipan ever talks to them. There is no way for Crime Stoppers to know if the caller was a male or a female and Crime Stoppers would not be able to identify any accent. Even a tip received through Language Line reveals nothing about a foreign language. Crime Stoppers receives a tip in English written form on a fax machine and nothing is known about the caller other than the information provided.

IF THE IDENTITY OF A TIPSTER IS UNKNOWN TO CRIME STOPPERS WHY DID CRIME STOPPERS INTRODUCE LEGISLATION MAKING IT A FELONY TO RELEASE THE IDENTITY OF THE TIPSTER?

It is really a matter of integrity. The NMI Crime Stoppers Program wants the public to know that they are holding themselves accountable. The identity of a tipster will be kept anonymous no matter the cost. No one can access it and persons associated with Crime Stoppers are legally bound not to reveal it. It is an added legal protection to maintain the anonymity of callers.

If, for some reason a caller would make their identity known to Crime Stoppers, Crime Stoppers would refer the caller to the appropriate law enforcement agency. The caller also would not be eligible for a reward from Crime Stoppers. Once the caller’s identity becomes known to Crime Stoppers, it is no longer a Crime Stoppers matter.

IF I CALL IN A TIP TO THE CRIME STOPPERS TIPS LINE HOW DO I GET A REWARD?

Again, each caller is provided with a code number. If the information (tip) called in by the caller leads to an arrest the caller is eligible for a reward. Crime Stoppers does not always pay a $1,000 reward for “every’ tip leading to an arrest.
It works the same way with online tips. When you submit information online there is a tip code number in the top right corner of the tip sheet. Each caller must remember this code and use that code in any future contact with Crime Stoppers.

WHAT DETERMINES THE AMOUNT OF THE REWARD TO BE GIVEN?

The Crime Stoppers Board of Directors works with a “reward points sheet.” For each tip called in which leads to an arrest the board determines the points. When the points are added up, the point value determines the amount of the reward.
Points are calculated in the following categories. Type of crime, number of cases cleared, number of persons arrested, dollar amount of stolen property recovered, and value of drugs seized. The more serious the crime, the more cases cleared, the more people arrested, the higher the value of stolen property recovered and the higher the value of drugs seized all go toward pushing the dollar amount of the reward higher.

HOW SOON CAN A TIPSTER EXPECT TO RECEIVE THEIR REWARD?

All rewards are paid in cash (since you cannot write a check to an anonymous person). Tipsters normally receive their reward/s after the Crime Stoppers Board has conducted their regularly scheduled monthly meeting. It is during that monthly meeting when rewards amounts are determined. Once the reward amount has been determined the tipster can call the coordinator and the coordinator will advise the caller of the amount of the reward and where the tipster can obtain their reward.

When an arrest has been made on the strength of a Crime Stoppers tip law enforcement investigates the case or cases further until all leads are exhausted. As a result of further investigation law enforcement may clear more cases, may make additional arrests, and may recover more stolen property or seize more illegal drugs. As a result, from the time of the first arrest, further investigation my push the reward amount much higher than just from the initial arrest. So, many times, it pays for the tipster to be patient and allow law enforcement complete their investigation first.

Many tipsters insist upon receiving their rewards immediately upon the initial arrest being made. In these instances the Board will call an emergency meeting and determine the reward amount.

IF MY CALL IS BEING ANSWERED IN CANADA, HOW DO THEY KNOW HOW TO TELL ME TO PICK UP MY REWARD?

Good question. If a caller calls asking about a reward, the answering service in Canada will instruct the caller to call back on any Wednesday between 2:00pm and 3:00pm. This is the time when your calls will always be answered by the Crime Stoppers Coordinator. Your call on Wednesday between 2:00pm to 3:00pm are always picked up before the 3rd ring and are answered locally. It is during this time that callers can inquire about rewards.

WHERE DO TIPSTERS RECEIVE THEIR REWARDS?

The cash reward is placed in an envelope with only the code number of the tipster written on the envelope. The envelope is given to a person who is not a Crime Stoppers Board member and is not a law enforcement officer. It is generally given to someone at some business establishment that is only known to the Crime Stoppers Coordinator and the tipster. The tipster goes to the location described by the coordinator and only gives his code number to the appropriate individual. That individual turns over the envelope and asks NO questions. A simple Thank You is all that is needed.

DOES A CALLER HAVE TO BE OVER 18 OR 21 YEARS OF AGE TO CALL IN A TIP ABOUT A CRIME?

No. Crime Stoppers asks nothing about the identity of the caller. Crime Stoppers only wants your information, not your name. Crime Stoppers ONLY wants your information. Crime Stoppers does not want to know anything about the caller. Not their age, not their gender, not their ethnic origin, nothing. Only the information.

DOES CRIME STOPPERS HAVE A WEB SITE?

Yes, people can go to www.nmicrimestoppers.com and visit the NMI Crime Stoppers web site. Among the information available on the site is information about cold case files, crime of the week and other important information about the NMI Crime Stoppers Program.

This is also the location where tipsters can submit tip information online and the information will remain secure and anonymous. Tipsters can even attach a photo to their tip. Just follow the navigation buttons to “Submit Online Tips” and the site will take you to the appropriate form to be filled out.

CAN PEOPLE USE THE CRIME STOPPERS WEB SITE TO SEND IN ANONYMOUS TIPS?

Yes and most of the details have been covered in previous questions and answers.