Surprise police launch a new crime fighting tool that puts you in charge

SURPRISE, AZ - Surprise police have launched a new crime fighting tool that gets the public involved with busting the bad guys.

In most crimes, police rely on the media to show you mug shots and surveillance video when they need help on a case.

But a new website called IDThisPerson.com lets police departments get those pictures directly to you.

"News changes daily, hourly by the minute," said Sgt. Norman Owens with the Surprise Police Department. "This is an area where we can get those photographs posted, where they'll stay up for a length of time."

The Surprise Police Department is the first agency in Arizona to use the new technology hoping it will increase the number of cases they solve and decrease the number of criminals on the city's streets.

It works by letting detectives post picture of people they need to find: not all of them are bad guys.

"Some of these may be persons who witnessed an incident and we need to get hold of them but don't have their identity," Owens said.

The rest is up to you. You log on to IDThisPerson.com when it's convenient for you, then pick the state you live in and scan through the photos.

If you recognize the person, you can email your tip right there.

Since your tip goes to the website, police don't know it came from you unless you choose to let them know.

"This hopefully will aid our investigators in solving some crimes where we don't know who the subject is," Owens said.

The digital crime stopper is funded by advertisers and free to police departments. Plus, if your tip helps, the website will send you a $25 gift card.

But the best part -- it's one less criminal on your streets.