How Crime Stoppers Began

A university student was killed during a gas station robbery in Albuquerque, New Mexico in July, 1976. After six weeks of investigation, police had very few leads as to who was responsible. Police Detective Greg MacAleese thought that if the public was able to observe a reenactment of the crime on television this may lead to a citizen providing information that may lead to an arrest.

Greg MacAleese was right. A caller contacted the police department the next day after seeing the reenactment. The tip information was enough to lead the police to the two men who were responsible. Within 72 hours of the reenactment being aired, the police had solved the murder. This was the beginning of Crime Stoppers.

Since it began, there are now more than 950 Crime Stoppers programs worldwide. More than 1.6 million crimes solved and over $137 million dollars in rewards paid since inception. Over $2.9 billion dollars’ worth of stolen property and narcotics have been seized.

LINK:   https://www.crimestoppersusa.org/history/

Locally, the Wichita Falls Area Crime Stoppers program is also very successful. Detailed amounts of arrests made, the stolen property recovered, and narcotics seized can be found on our Stats Page.