Subway burglary suspects caught in North Fort Myers through Crime Stoppers tip
Two North Fort Myers residents were arrested in connection with a string of thefts at Subway restaurants, with the big break in the case coming from an anonymous Crime Stoppers tip.
Casey Long, 33, and Damion Stafford, 30, were taken into custody when investigators found them attempting to burglarize another local shop in Weaver’s Corner shopping center following the tip, officials said.
The two have been charged with various counts of burglary, petit larceny, damage property/criminal mischief and neglect child without great harm.
Upon her arrest on Feb. 13, Long reportedly told detectives that she and Stafford had left their 23-month old son at home unsupervised while they were committing the crime. Deputies went to the residence and found the child at home asleep.
The tip was invaluable in the investigation, said Trish Routte, program coordinator for Southwest Florida Crime Stoppers. “And the way our guys (investigators) played it out made the investigation successful. They worked surveillance all night long to make the arrest because somebody gave critical information.”
The local Crime Stoppers program and those throughout the country announced last week a new way to submit tips. It is called TipSubmit, a mobile app for the iPhone.
“Technology is advancing, it is our responsibility to keep up with times, we need to be part of that process,” said Routte. “If it is easier for people to provide tips this way, we want to make it as easy as possible. They can do the right thing and help law enforcement.”
The app is the first anonymous and fully featured iPhone application that allows the public to submit tips and help solve and prevent crime in their community, Routte said.
The new mobile app offers new features and benefits not available with any existing tip submission process, including the ability to submit images, unlimited messaging length, fully anonymous two-way dialogue and even virtual chat mode when both parties are online.
Although the mobile app is currently available for download to the iPhone through iTunes at no cost, software creators anticipate having a similar app available for the Android platform within the next three months.
To download the mobile app, tipsters can search for TipSoft or TipSubmit at the iTunes app store.
“The software has been tested thoroughly to ensure that the identity of our tipsters is always protected.”
In addition to the new mobile app, those wanting to provide information can still call the Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-780-TIPS (8477) or go online at swflcrimestoppers.org.
As with all means of tip submission, tipsters providing information that leads to an arrest are eligible for a cash reward of up to $1,000.
Since the Jan. 1, 91 suspects have been jailed as a result of tips provided to Southwest Florida Crime Stoppers, resulting in the closure of 255 cases. Those tips have led to the payout of $25,160 in cash rewards.
The tips work, and you can also do it with the app to provide one little bit of information that can lead to the closure of a major case, which was evident in the Subway burglaries, Routte said.