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Record number of tips helps Fairfax County police solve crimes
In Fairfax County, 2025 was a record year for people helping police solve crimes. FOX 5's Josh Rosenthal has the details.
FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. - In Fairfax County, 2025 was a record year for people helping police solve crimes.
The backstory:
Fairfax County police officials said 2025 was a record year for the Crime Solvers tip program, which, for the first time, was overseen by the police department’s Real Time Crime Center (RTCC). The program allows citizens to anonymously give authorities information about crimes. Then, if the information provided results in an arrest, a cash reward may be paid to the tipster.
Among the arrests and case closures that police said were spurred by tips: a Mount Vernon homicide, a Reston commercial burglary, a peeping incident in McLean, and a suicidal person in crisis who was safely located and helped by detectives.
More information about the Crime Solvers program can be found here.
By the numbers:
In 2025, Fairfax County investigators said they received 643 Crime Solvers tips, the highest annual total in the program's history. Of those, 340 tips were submitted by mobile app, 187 by website, and 116 by phone.
Officials added that $16,250 was paid out in cash rewards, stemming from 13 qualifying tips.
What they're saying:
"We were able to make arrests much quicker than we could before," said Major Hudson Bull, the RTCC commander. "This year we were able to take in more tips than ever using our public affairs bureau and reaching out to the community to get tips, knowing that when those tips came in, we’d be able to act on them quickly."