Crook gets nabbed by text in South Africa

Link: IOL: Man arrested after SMS tip-off

Just a few days after the launch of a new ‘text the police’ service in South Africa, one unlucky individual has already been caught by the power of SMS.

A man suspected of armed robbery was arrested after police were tipped off by a cellphone SMS, police said on Monday. “The SA Police Service is delighted that only hours after the launch of Primedia’s Crime Line, the first criminal was nabbed,” said national police spokesperson Sally de Beer.

The SMS service, an anti-crime campaign where people can send information on suspected crime while remaining anonymous, was launched last week. The SMS informed police of the whereabouts of the suspect. He was arrested on Friday in Rustenburg.