Crime Stoppers officials learn more in off-island conference

Top officers of the NMI Crime Stoppers Program learned other techniques, policies, and procedures on how to make the program more effective during a recent conference in New Mexico.

NMI Crime Stoppers Program chair Jim Arenovkski, vice-chair Jim Ripple, secretary-treasurer Rick Northen, and coordinator Sgt. Thomas A. Blas Jr. attended the program’s 27th Annual International Training Conference held on Oct. 2 to 5 in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

The conference coincided with the 30th anniversary of the birth of the program, which started back in 1976 in Albuquerque.

“This is our way for us to come together and share ideas just like any other conferences as well as having some professionals come in and give us better information on how to run our boards better, how to work with the media better, with the police department better so that we become more effective for our community,” said Arenovski during a press conference Tuesday at the Department of Public Safety.

Arenovski said that 30 years ago the program was just a noble idea, but today it is in Europe, United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Australia, United States, Canada, some countries in Central and South America and Micronesia as well.

He said they raised money to send people to the conference. With the help of Northwest Airlines, they were able to send four people this year, which is significant because of the 30th anniversary.

Arenovski said the New Mexico governor, who was among the speakers, talked a little about the effectiveness of Crime Stoppers in his state.

Arenovski said the vice-chairman of the criminal investigation division for the United Nations also conducted sessions.

Crime Stoppers is an official non-government organization within the United Nations now, Arenovski disclosed.

Blas said that representatives from all local and state-run Crime Stoppers Program gathered and shared policies and procedures in applying old and new programs, skills and techniques.

Blas said that meeting with program coordinators from all over the world opened communication lines with each other to network ideas and solutions to problems that they may encounter.

“The conference provided a wealth of resources that we as the NMI Crime Stoppers can reference to and seek assistance from such as legal advisements, additional trainings and current issues and upcoming events,” he said.

“Some of the programs operate differently from ours, but they do have techniques, policies and procedures that we can apply here in the CNMI as well,” Blas said.

DPS commissioner Rebecca Warfield said she is pleased to work with Crime Stoppers, which has been utilized by the department in the past.

“We want to promote assistance of ownership among the people in the community because we are only as strong as our community. We work diligently to provide effective and efficient service to the people of the community but DPS can only do so much. It doesn’t matter if our officers go out and investigate, if people are unwilling to talk to us,” Warfield said.

The commissioner said they understand that people often fear reprisals, that they often fear their neighbors or family members ostracizing them because they’ve been cooperative.

“That’s the purpose of Crime Stoppers. It steps in and goes after the most important thing—information. And that person’s anonymity is maintained,” she pointed out.