Peterborough Police Service Launches Program to Crowd-Source Investigative Leads

The Peterborough Police Service has launched a new web portal to seek the public’s help in identifying people of interest in open investigations, announced on Thursday.

Photo courtesy of the Peterborough Police Service.

According to the Peterborough Police, investigations are often supported by businesses and homes with security surveillance cameras, during which officers attempt to establish the identity of potential suspects. During this process, crime bulletins with photos or videos are created as an investigative aid. For the most part, officers can identify the person of interest; however, in some cases, police will need to turn to the public for help. 

To facilitate the program, the Peterborough Police Service will use its online reporting tool to make crime bulletins available to the public via a portal on the Peterborough Police Service website. 

These bulletins will be posted publicly after all other investigative leads have been exhausted and will remain active for 30 days before being automatically removed.  If an individual is identified prior to the automated expiration date, the bulletin will be removed.

You can find the page online under the ‘Media Section – Help Us Identify.’

“Community safety and feelings of being safe is our top priority. This new portal builds upon the success of the Community F.I.R.S.T. initiative that primarily focuses on responses to property crimes that are low-dollar value, but high-frequency and is a way to reach into our community to achieve this goal in a timely way,” said Stuart Betts, Peterborough Police Chief. “It is widely recognized that social media is being used as an unregulated means for sharing photos and videos and we are looking to harness this public interest to engage the community in a way that will provide assistance in investigations. I want to stress that the identification process is intended to utilize Crime Stoppers to ensure anonymity of those assisting. The Criminal Code authority for citizens to effect an arrest does not extend to situations where people identify someone from these bulletins, and no one should confront or attempt to apprehend anyone they may recognize, but rather to provide the police with the information.”

Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or online. The Peterborough Police ask that you include the Reference Number with your information.

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