57 Arrests After Calls To Charity

2 November 2011, 05:00

A rapist, prolific burglar and a man wanted over an attempted murder have all been caught thanks to members of the public calling Thames Valley Crimestoppers.

Just over a third of the 159 faces on the charity's Most Wanted page have been found with the public's help since it went online a year ago.

The charity says information given by callers has led to one arrest of a Most Wanted criminal every week.

Crimestoppers wants to improve these figures by encouraging communities to regularly visit their website.

Julia Hughes, Projects Coordinator for Thames Valley Crimestoppers said:

“We have been overwhelmed by the public’s response to the Most Wanted website. They have thoroughly embraced the initiative from the start and helped to locate 57 criminals who may otherwise still be 'at large'. And with this success we are asking everyone to visit the website once a week and see who they recognise.

"Information can be provided to our charity with a simple call to 0800 555 111 or online and the public can be assured that we won’t ask for their name or contact details. We are only interested in helping to solve crime.”

In line with the launch of a national fraud campaign, the Thames Valley Crimestoppers Most Wanted pages currently feature a number of key fraudsters wanted across the region.

14 of the 39 faces posted are suspected of Fraud & Forgery offences – the biggest category of 'at large' criminals highlighted on the website.

Det. Chief Inspector Ray Howard of Thames Valley Police said:

“The public hold the key to vital information about who is doing what locally and they are generally happy to inform the police directly.

"However there are some people who are often scared to speak out and for this minority Crimestoppers can act as a 'middleman' providing a safe way to supply key information on criminal activity.

"The caller remains anonymous whilst we the police get the vital intelligence we require to help keep our communities safe.”