Milwaukee officials announce Crime Stoppers reward partnership

People can now report crime in Milwaukee anonymously and receive cash rewards in the process.

On Tuesday, city officials announced the launch of Milwaukee Crime Stoppers, which will offer rewards of up to $1,000 for information provided anonymously that leads to arrests in connection with major crimes.

People may call in tips to police through an anonymous, secured tip line or a secure web connection staffed by a professional coordinator, officials said.

Anonymity is assured through a code number assigned to each caller, whose phone number is scrambled and routed to a call center out of Wisconsin, said Milwaukee police Capt. Craig Sarnow.

"People often are reluctant to provide us with information out of fear — fear of reprisal and fear of retaliation," Sarnow said a news conference at City Hall. "Crime Stoppers mitigates that." 

Milwaukee Crime Stoppers cannot call tipsters back and will not have any way to contact them, Sarnow said.

Local law enforcement does not have access to call records, according to information provided by Crime Stoppers.

The idea for Milwaukee Crime Stoppers gained speed when Ald. Chantia Lewis' cousin Phillip Franklin, 47, was killed by a hit-and-run driver in May 2017.

"We had no information for months," Phillip Franklin's daughter Candace Franklin said Tuesday. "There was a lot of speculation but we had nothing."

It took almost a year for Milwaukee police to take a suspect in the hit-and-run into custody, and another year before he was convicted and sent to prison.

Lewis said she and Candace Franklin enlisted the help of WDJT-TV (Channel 58) news anchor and reporter Amanda Porterfield to lead the effort to establish Milwaukee Crime Stoppers.

"We … really tried to make sure that we could bring this to the community so that no one else has to feel like our family had to when we could not get justice," Lewis said.

As part of the Milwaukee effort, police and the television station will feature a "Crime of the Week" segment on Thursday newscasts at 4 and 9 p.m. 

Since neither police nor Crime Stoppers can call tipsters back, it is important for callers to leave as much detailed information as possible when calling the tip line,  Sarnow said.

Callers to the tip line will receive a code number to use when calling Crime Stoppers back to learn whether their tips have led to a reward and how to collect it.

"It's not snitching, it's not meddling," Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said at the news conference. "It's being a good citizen."

Callers can submit information on crimes in Milwaukee anonymously by calling Milwaukee Crime Stoppers at (414) 224-TIPS (8477). People can also visit milwaukeecrimestoppers.com to submit information anonymously.