Crimestoppers is a crime-fighting charity that has served as an anonymous liaison between the UK public and the police for 35 years. It handles a wide array of cases, from drug dealing and dangerous driving to serious crimes like murder, receiving over half a million reports annually. Despite its success, the charity’s internal operations have been little studied. My research found that the anonymity Crimestoppers offers encourages people to provide information about violent or organized crimes, often more so than potential cash rewards. Crimestoppers originated in the US in the mid-1970s and has since been adopted worldwide, often offering cash rewards to incentivize tips. The UK branch was founded in 1988, initially as the Community Action Trust, following the murder of PC Keith Blakelock during the 1985 Broadwater Farm riots in London
At that time, the police believed witnesses were too scared to come forward. While Crimestoppers aimed to rebuild trust in the police in England, it was publicized differently in other UK regions. In Northern Ireland, people were encouraged to call “without fear and without involvement,” whereas in Wales and Scotland, it was positioned as a community-friendly service. The use of TV reconstructions has significantly contributed to Crimestoppers’ global expansion, with research indicating that media appeals can help solve a small number of serious crimes. Notably, a tip-off led to the arrest of serial killer Peter Moore in 1995, and a reward was offered for information about a violent robbery by John Cooper in 1996. Cooper was later convicted in 2011 of multiple murders and other serious offenses in Pembrokeshire, Wales. However, Crimestoppers’ exact role in solving such cases remains unclear due to its strict anonymity policy. A Home Office study two decades ago showed that 17% of actionable information from Crimestoppers led to arrests. The charity’s annual reports now provide some insights into the results of awareness campaigns and “most wanted” appeals. While researching, I found that Crimestoppers has a strong rapport with the police, unlike the anonymous individuals who contact them.
As I could not interview the callers, I gathered insights from contact center staff and police officers involved with Crimestoppers. Community officers often encounter reluctance to report crimes due to fear and perceived injustice, especially in tight-knit communities. For instance, one officer mentioned that generational reluctance to contact the police, including in his own family, is common: My grandmother, a well-informed person in her village, wouldn’t turn to the police first. An independent policing review last year highlighted a decline in public confidence in the police and an increasing fear of crime, particularly in deprived areas and among minority ethnic groups. Crimestoppers’ survey indicates that these groups are most likely to contact them. A major shift over the past 35 years has been the rise of online crime reporting. Crimestoppers’ data shows that 75% of the information sent to police now comes through their website. While there are numerous confidential police helplines for specific crimes, such as domestic violence and hate crimes, Crimestoppers remains the primary anonymous crime reporting service.
One study suggests that Crimestoppers facilitates the gathering of “collective intelligence” through social networks, which promotes online reporting. In 2019, the charity faced criticism for using cookies that track website users, but it insists it does not monitor individuals. It is unclear if Crimestoppers’ cash rewards have enduring appeal. My research, consistent with past studies, found that while police officers find rewards useful, they motivate only a minority of cases. The main value of rewards might be in capturing public attention amid a busy media environment. Crimestoppers recently offered its largest-ever reward of £200,000 related to the murder of Olivia Pratt-Korbel, a 9-year-old girl shot in Liverpool in September 2022.