The History of Crime Stoppers
THE CONCEPT OF CRIME STOPPERS was developed in 1976 in
Albuquerque, New Mexico by Greg MacAleese who was a police detective.
MacAleese was working on a murder case and had run out of leads, however
he felt that someone in the community knew details of the murder.
MacAleese arranged to film a re-enactment of the crime and have it shown
on the local television station.
At the same time they advertised a reward that was being offered by a
local civic organization.
Within a week, MacAleese had received a tip from an informant that led
to the arrest of the individual responsible and the reward was paid.
Washington County Crime Stoppers - History
In 1984, a group
of Brenham businessmen, formed a non-profit organization called
Crime Stoppers of Brenham–Washington County, Inc. to assist law
enforcement with their endeavor to fight crime in Washington County,
just as the original Crime Stoppers in New Mexico had.
Since it’s
inception, Brenham – Washington County Crime Stoppers has paid out Tens
of Thousands of dollars in Crime Stopper tips to nab criminal throughout
the county, to include in the last several years, a murder conviction, a
bank robber conviction, and numerous burglaries in the area.
In 1999, Crime
Stoppers was introduced into the Brenham Schools, where it has also
been successful in removing drugs from our schools, and apprehending
vandals and thieves.
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