SMS alerts in fight against crime

They have re-invented the London hue and cry. We ran a similar service with Hutchison paging in London - alerts for fraud and shoplifting gangs. =================================

SMS alerts in fight against crime

By Tracy Sua Nov 14, 2005 The Straits Times

A FRESH approach to tackle rising crime - using SMS technology and enlisting youngsters as crime-fighting ambassadors - was announced yesterday, as new figures show a spike in crimes ranging from snatch thefts to robberies.

Snatch thefts, cellphone thefts, robberies and housebreaking cases saw dramatic increases from January to September this year, compared to the same period last year.

Senior Minister of State (Law and Home Affairs) Ho Peng Kee disclosed that a two-pronged approach was being adopted to deal with such matters when he launched the annual festive season crime prevention campaign.

To get people wired to crime prevention, police are trying out an SMS crime advisory alert initiative. They send SMS messages to subscribers' cellphones, alerting them to crimes in their neighbourhoods and suggesting precautions they can take to protect themselves.

The pilot project started in August, with about 1,200 subscribers, mainly Neighbourhood Watch Zone liaison officers, their assistants and Crime Prevention Ambassadors for senior citizens. They, in turn, disseminate information to residents if necessary.

If the pilot is successful, police hope to implement the scheme island-wide.

This initiative first started as a community safety and security project by Yew Tee Zone 9 Residents Committee (RC) and Choa Chu Kang Neighbourhood Police post in July last year.

The RC hit on the idea of using the SMS service when it realised door-to-door flyer distribution on crime alerts was not efficient.

Police are also clamping down on youths involved in shop thefts, as well as rioting.

The number of youths caught rioting is on the rise. In 2001, 250 were caught, then 446 in 2002, 493 in 2003 and 512 last year.

A Police Youth Ambassador programme will start next year, training young cadets to serve as mentors to other students. National Police Cadet Corp cadets will be trained over three years in crime prevention skills, community safety and security skills.

The scheme is in line with the National Crime Prevention Council's belief that peer pressure has a strong influence in steering youths away from crime.

tracysua@sph.com.sg