Facebookers nabbing five crims a week

A police Facebook page is nabbing up to five Northland criminals a week, and notching up a success rate of about 95 per cent, according to a senior Far North officer.

The use of social media as an everyday crime-fighting tool was pioneered in the North by Houhora's Senior Constable Tracee Knowler, who shot to national prominence when she used Facebook to catch the Pukenui burglar who became known as the Buttcrack Bandit. Since then it has proved invaluable for sharing information quickly with large numbers of people, for example during the July floods, when police used it to update motorists on weather conditions, hazards and road closures.

Firm numbers of how many crimes have been solved with help from Northland's online community are hard to come by, but the anecdotal evidence is impressive. Far North prevention officer Senior Sergeant Chris McLellan said the Northland police page was averaging five arrests a week and had a success rate of about 95 per cent. A typical post was viewed 10,000 times, received 30-40 comments and prompted three or four calls to Crimestoppers.

"Social media gives us the ability to reach a lot of people, very quickly, at the push of a button,"

he said.

The page was often used to identify suspects captured on security cameras. The current record of two and a half hours was held by a Mangonui woman who was caught on CCTV as she allegedly shoplifted at a supermarket, while the biggest response to date followed the June 29 aggravated robbery of a Kaitaia bakery. That Facebook post was viewed 15,000 times, three times the population of Kaitaia, and was widely shared on social media. It too led to an arrest.

A post last week about a shoplifting incident led to 5150 views, 44 comments and three calls to Crimestoppers. The offender called police within four hours after hearing her photo was on Facebook, Senior Sergeant McLellan said.

Police were also hopeful that CCTV images shared on social media would led to the men who broke in to a Kaikohe supermarket, taking seven packets of mallowpuffs but causing considerable damage as they smashed their way inside.

Facebook did have its downside though. Police continually monitored the page for derogatory comments and were mindful of individuals' privacy. Posts were removed as soon as a wanted person was caught or came forward.

When police were looking for people subject to arrest they would try known addresses and other leads before posting names and photos on Facebook.

Some users left comments saying police should "do their own job" rather than using Facebook, but Senior Sergeant McLellan said social media was just one part of policing's future. Police were also investing heavily in technology such as iPhones and iPads to share information quickly and reduce the amount of time spent on paperwork. They were also using Facebook to offer crime prevention advice and reunite owners with stolen property.

Northland's other leading social media crime-fighter is Kaikohe businessman Tony Taylor, whose Kaikohe Community Watch page is just over a year old but has almost as many members, 3882, as the town has people. It has spawned similar community-run pages in Kerikeri, the Central Bay of Islands, Haruru Falls and Doubtless Bay.

Mr Taylor told the Age the page had been such a success he sometimes had trouble finding crimes to keep it interesting.

"We've still got a few offenders in Kaikohe, but they're actually offending outside Kaikohe because there are just too many people watching here," he said.

Senior Sergeant McLellan said the Kaikohe community page had caught international attention, and Mr Taylor and his wife Debbie did "an outstanding job.'