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CrimeStoppers founder: Shunned police "a toxic mix" for neighborhoods, anonymous tips

Buddy Chapman said he's worried about the gap between community and the public widening amid an increase in violent crime.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Crime is on our radar more these days. 

Earlier this week, ABC24 took a look at the latest data from CrimeStoppers on the number of tips that help solve cases. If there is a shooting, burglary or homicide in your neighborhood what you want to know next is the suspect caught?

"We don't have caller ID on the phone,” assured Buddy Chapman, who’s over CrimeStoppers. “We won't take your name if you give it to us."

The organization was started in 1982. The pandemic slowed down calls, but CrimeStoppers is seeing about a 30% uptick in calls, said Chapman.

"People just weren't out talking they weren't out seeing people they weren't hearing what was going on," he said.

He believes fear of retaliation may hold some neighbors back from calling in tips but thinks it's a mindset.

 "The community just being oh, 'that's the way it is,'" shared Chapman. “The community has got to be a partner with the police department. They can do that through CrimeStoppers to say enough is enough. We're not going to put up with people killing each other."

He believes, "a police force that in some degree feels that they're not being supported by the community you have a little bit of a toxic mix."

He went on to say, "we need more policemen, more police won't necessarily stop the rime unless you address those other two issues."

Chapman said in the last two months, carjackings have been more troubling.

"Carjackings if they're done by (who) they’re now done by, 14-16 year-olds in large part they're a homicide waiting to happen," he explained. “I'm troubled by the fact that it seems to be the proportion of those really dangerous crimes are higher than they really have been."

A higher number of crimes Chapman said and a widening gap between law enforcement and neighbors. 

"It can't be those people enforcing these laws on me, it's got to be us, we the community, along with the police department, don't want you killing robbing and raping people, we want you not to do that," he said. "We're going to be apart of keeping you from doing that."

CrimeStoppers data shows for September of this year, 30 cases were cleared thanks to the public's help. That means a crime tip called in about one suspect connected that same suspect to a previous crime.

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