CSI Update – “ANONYMOUS WITNESS HOTLINE” is Live and being tested
We’re very pleased to announce that the Anonymous Witness Hotline went live this week and is currently being tested following proper procedures. We expect the Hotline to be fully functional and available to be used by the Community in early February. At that time, we will also announce a detailed informational/communication program on how to use the Hotline to report tips on crimes committed in our Municipality. You can rest assured that the Hotline will be totally anonymous – no one will know who the caller is or the phone number they are calling from. The Hotline is part of a very successful program called Crime Stoppers International, based in Canada and serving 22 countries including the USA.
Our CSI committee has worked closely with the Chapala Municipality, especially our Police Chief, Captain Reynol Contreras, who has been extremely supportive of this effort. Our team and Captain Contreras have worked diligently throughout the Holiday season to successfully roll out this program.
For the next few weeks, the hotline will be tested by a select group of people, members of the Mexican and Foreign communities, who will be calling in pre-scripted tips in order to verify that the intake, handling, and forwarding of information process is working as intended. Response time by call center representatives, the ability to handle calls in English and Spanish, and the turnaround time between receipt of tips and when they’re forwarded to the Chief of Police will be closely monitored and any adjustments will be made prior to releasing the Mexican Toll Free number to the community in early February.
CSI is also actively working on a Neighborhood Watch program, again borrowing from successful programs in many other locations in the USA, Canada and Mexico. We also plan to implement this program in the February time frame.
The “Boots on the Ground” program is also being actively pursued; however, due to its complexity we expect that it’ll be implemented a few months out. In the interim, there has been a noticeable improvement in police patrolling in the Chapala Municipality.
We at CSI have now formally organized ourselves with equal representation from both the Mexican and Foreign communities. We are working closely with several key members of the Chapala Municipal Government and the State of Jalisco.
Finally, we are happy to report that a voluntary funding program has been setup to collect donations for the improvement of Security in the Municipality. This year, when you pay your “predial” (real estate taxes) at the Municipality, you can also request to make a donation towards security. Just ask the teller and make sure that you receive a receipt. This fund will be managed separately from the other government funds and we’ll have a say on how the funds will be used.
Folks, we are working together with many of you and the authorities to make Chapala/Ajijic a much better and safer community. We look forward to your on-going support. May you have a happy and blessed 2012.
CSI Team
