Police Department Unveils Text Tip Line

In an effort to involve younger citizens, the New York City Police Department unveiled a way to send in tips via text message.

Texting CRIMES, or 274637, on a cell phone, will begin a text conversation with detectives who will be standing by at the police department. To begin, users must precede their message with the code, "TIP577," which will then create an alias to ensure anonymity. In case of danger, police said, a user can conclude a message with the word "stop," which will keep him or her from receiving any further messages from the police.

"With teenagers and younger people, there is a culture of texting," Deputy Commissioner Paul Browne said in a briefing last night. "They're opting to text each other, so we're taking advantage of that."