INDIANAPOLIS -- Offering reward money can capture headlines and draw out witnesses, but the people who call in the most important tips aren’t always doing it for the cash.
Crime Stoppers of Central Indiana’s Steve Dubois is also a former IMPD Sergeant, so he knows the importance of a good tip.
“One of my very first cases was solved by a Crime Stoppers tip,” said Dubois.
Crime Stoppers has paid out nearly $900,000 since they began in 1986. That may seem like a lot of cases solved, but Dubois said only 25-30 percent of tipsters actually collect their reward.
“The money is either secondary or is a non-motivator to begin with,” said Dubois.
Most of the people who call in tips, especially on violent crimes, are doing it for their peace of mind.
But that doesn’t mean rewards aren’t important. Dubois said a lot of times offering a reward could convince people to call, even if they weren’t quite ready to pick up the phone.
“The person who wouldn’t normally call, they get pushed over the bump by that reward. They get over their apathy, or their fear and they’re able to call,” said Dubois.
And rewards have always been an effective way to draw attention to a case.
It only takes one tip to solve a crime.
“We need people to tell us. The police are not at every crime, so obviously they need people to tell them what happened,” said Dubois.
Dubois said one thing he does see often, is a correlation between the amount of money offered for a reward and the number of tips received.
Like the reward money offered in the murders of two Delphi teens. Over 10,000 tips have already been received in the case, and that number continues to grow with the reward.
Abigail Williams,13, and Liberty German, 14, went missing while hiking on February 13 near the Monon High Bridge. Their bodies were found the next day.
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Authorities have released a picture of a suspect, which was taken by Liberty on her cell phone. She also captured the man's voice saying "down the hill." You can listen to that clip by clicking play below.
If you would like to donate to the reward fund, you can mail a check to the Indiana State Police Alliance, 1415 Shelby Street, Indianapolis, IN, 46203. Put "Delphi Reward" on the memo line of your check
Indiana State Police are still encouraging anyone with information on the case, no matter how insignificant, to call the Delphi Homicide Investigation Tip Line at (844) 459-5786 or 1-800-225-5324 (800-Call FBI). Tips can also be emailed to Abbyandlibbytip@cacoshrf.com. Information can be reported anonymously.
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