Greater Victoria Crime Stoppers has a message for the region’s drug dealers: Help us put your competition out of business.
“Dear Illegal Drug Dealers, Are you “beefing” with a rival? Just a thought, but why not use us to take care of the competition by sending them to jail? We would like to know what they are dealing, where their stash locations are, when they reload and if they have any weapons, such as firearms,” reads the post on Greater Victoria Crime Stoppers’ Facebook page.
The post encourages drug dealers to report their competition anonymously, and reminds them they could collect a reward of up to $2,000 for information that leads to an arrest.
“It’s actually getting quite a mixed review online. A lot of people quite enjoy it,” said Phil Downie, Crime Stoppers program co-ordinator, who borrowed the idea from counterparts in Saskatoon.
“They put it out and I was like, ‘We need to have this. This is fantastic’.”
The post goes on to fuel potential paranoia among the drug dealers.
“We know what you are thinking, ‘I am no rat.’ But wait a second, what if they are the ones reading this and take us up on this offer before you do?”
The dealers are encouraged to contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) to turn in the competition – but so far there have been no takers.
“It was kind of a serious gag,” said Downie. “You never know what will happen. We’re hopeful.”
