VICKSBURG, Miss. (AP) - Vicksburg Police and Crimestoppers have partnered to double reward money for residents’ help in solving five killings from 2020 to bring closure to those cases.
“Most of the time people are afraid especially with the types of crimes, the violent crimes we deal with. People just don’t feel comfortable talking about them,” Vicksburg Police Lt. Johnnie Edwards said.
According to police, there were 11 homicides in Vicksburg last year and five remain unsolved, news outlets report. In 2019, Vicksburg recorded just three homicides.
Edwards said although many times people in the community know who committed the crimes, they feel it is safer to just stay silent.
“Yes, it’s the culture on the street and we heard it time and time again that snitches get stitches. It is an old saying,” he said.
Edwards said he refuses to let the cases go cold, so he sent a letter to the Mayor George Flaggs and the Board of Aldermen, appealing for financial help.
“We should make it priority to solve homicides as quick as we can,” Flaggs said.
Flaggs said the city has now pledged $2,500 toward each case. That’s on top of the $2,500 Crimestoppers offers for information leading to an arrest in connection with a homicide.
Both Edwards and Flaggs hope the money will entice people to step forward and speak up to bring the families closure and make the streets safer.
“We’re hoping it will influence people with information on these cases to come forward and help us solve them,” Edwards said. “You can only imagine these families are hurting. I have spoken to mothers and uncles and grandparents because all of them call.”
“They want to be able to know who murdered their loved ones, and that these people have been brought to justice, and that is what we want to do in the city,” Flaggs said.
The Crimestoppers’ tipsters and calls are anonymous. Anyone with information on any of the 2020 homicides in Vicksburg, can call Central Mississippi Crimestoppers at 601-355-TIPS.
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