Leland Police recently announced a new service in which residents can submit tips anonymously via text messages.
Leland Police Lt. Joseph Pierce said Leland was the first police department in Brunswick County to offer the text message service to its residents.
“Beginning next week, the Leland Police Department will be launching tip411, an Internet-based tool that enables the public to text message anonymous tips to police, and lets the police respond back created a two-way anonymous ‘chat’ in both English and Spanish,” Pierce said.
Pierce said they will receive a specific code next week for people to text message tips.
Tip411 is not a substitute for 911.
“If you are calling in an emergency you should always call 911 for an immediate response,” Pierce said.
Reserved exclusively for public safety purposes, tip411 is run by Citizen Observer, a Minnesota-based company.
Pierce said the tip411 is a powerful crime fighting tool for the Leland community.
“This is part of the new focus of the Leland Police Department to actively engage the public and encourage the citizens to play an active role in keeping neighborhoods and schools safer. Soon, every marked patrol vehicle will be outfitted with a decal bearing the tip code that anonymous tips can be sent to,” Pierce said.
Charlie Miller, chief deputy at the Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office, said they have been using a similar program in Brunswick County high schools for the past several years. Brunswick County high schools use Campus Crime Stoppers, which allows students to anonymously text crime tips.
Miller said the sheriff’s office also has an anonymous tip function on the department’s website.
“I get leads every day from the website,” Miller said.
