The New Castle County Police held a press conference today to announce two new partnerships in the ongoing effort to combat crime.
Earlier this year, New Castle County Executive Thomas P. Gordon and The New Castle County Council came together and offered reward money of up to $20,000 for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of subjects responsible for major crimes of violence to include homicide, rape, and serious assaults. “Delaware Crime Stoppers” came to an agreement with the New Castle County Police to distribute the funds allocated for rewards.
With this agreement, Delaware Crime Stoppers will assist in the receipt of any tip and the distribution of any funds awarded to the tipster. Delaware Crime Stoppers is an effective way to provide information on a crime and still have the ability to be anonymous. Tips can be provided by calling 1-800-TIP-3333 or going to www.tipsubmit.com .
The New Castle County Police have also partnered with Applied DNA Sciences to provide our citizens additional tools to help keep their property safe. Citizens can now “engrave” their property with plant based DNA which is specifically assigned to them. The DNA is harvested from common house plants and re-engineered to produce a non-toxic liquid that is assigned to a person, business or organization.
The plant based DNA can be purchased online by going to www.adnas.com and selecting the Home Asset Marking option. Once purchased, the substance can be applied to any property and is not visible under normal lighting conditions.
Citizens who purchase the kit will have the option of posting stickers and signs in the same manner as alarm signage. Twenty four (24) officers were trained in July and learned how to locate the markings on recovered property. Once the markings are located by the officer, a sample can be submitted to Applied DNA Sciences and they can determine the owner of the property based on the DNA signature. More information can be obtained about the product by visiting the aforementioned website.
The New Castle County Police continue to pursue new innovative ways to prevent and help solve all crimes in New Castle County. These partnerships are a few examples of the commitment to those we serve.