Graffiti dobbers spurn rewards

People dobbing in taggers through a confidential tip-off line have turned down cash rewards for their good deeds.

None of the 200 people to call the Stop Tags phoneline, which operates in Auckland and Manukau cities, has taken the money on offer in exchange for tips which lead to apprehending a tagger.

"The people who ring in and give information are so keen to get rid of taggers that no one's asked for money," said Auckland City councillor Paul Goldsmith.

But a small amount of cash was given out by investigators while conducting "surveillance operations".

The council claims eight of the city's 10 worst graffiti vandals have been caught as a result of the tip line, introduced in April last year.

Information from tips is forwarded to private investigators, with details collected by contractors and volunteers who paint out graffiti.

So far 49 taggers have been identified, and four files a month are handed to police for follow-up.

During the same period, 39 offenders were arrested, partly as a result of the council's information.

Goldsmith said the cost of identifying and prosecuting offenders was small compared with the money spent cleaning and painting out graffiti.

About $1.8 million was spent every year on eradication, while the budget for investigations and enforcement was $259,000.

Manukau City Council joined the Stop Tags tip-off line a month ago, but has been running its own anti-tagging line for two years.

The council spends $1m on graffiti a year, of which $800,000 goes towards painting and cleaning, $100,000 on investigations and the rest on education programmes.

Senior policy analyst Rex Hewitt said the programme had had resulted in a "noticeably cleaner city".