CRIME Stop Jamaica paid out more than $10 million in rewards last year after tips provided led to arrests and the recovery of stolen property, according to the latest edition of the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ) Economic and Social Survey Jamaica which was tabled in Parliament on Tuesday.

According to the survey, Crime Stop paid out a total of $10,225,000 to callers whose tips yielded positive results in 2023.

Tips from callers, the report said, led to the arrest of 39 people last year while a total of $30,758,770 worth of stolen property was recovered. The report said $309,846 worth of narcotics was also seized.

Last month, the Jamaica Observer reported that tips to Crime Stop had increased by 66 per cent in two years, fuelled by the police’s creative way of using social media to lure people into making reports about crimes.

Shaunjaye Mitchell, deputy superintendent of police, said the social media campaign started by the Jamaica Constabulary Force has been responsible for rebuilding trust between the public and the police.

“Statistically, based on the seismic increase in the number of tips flowing into Crime Stop Jamaica, we can say it is having a positive impact on how people feel about sharing sensitive information with the police,” Mitchell said.

In order to connect with Crime Stop, callers need only to dial 311.

Tips to Crime Stop began seeing an increase after 2021, when it received 685 tips. In 2022, Crime Stop received 1,148 tips. In 2023, however, there was a slight dip compared to the previous year but it was still considered significant.

Crime Stop is a partnership between the community, the police and the media designed to involve the public in the fight against crime.

Crime Stop encourages the public to give information by offering total anonymity to all callers and, for those who wish, a cash reward for information that leads to an arrest, recovery of stolen property or the seizure of illegal drugs or guns.

The programme is administered by the National Crime Prevention Fund and is run under the direction of the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica.