The Dogwood Festival is just around the corner in Fayetteville, and the annual “unofficial kickoff” barbecue is about to happen. The annual Crime Stoppers Benefit BBQ celebrates its 40th year on Friday, April 26. It is hosted by the Fayetteville/Cumberland Crime Stoppers and the Spring Lake Police Department. Similar to previous years, the event will be at the parking lot of the Harris Teeter located at 2800 Raeford Road. This event is a chance to support the Fayetteville/Cumberland County Crime Stoppers and enjoy a nice meal of North Carolina barbecue.
The barbecue starts at 11 a.m. and ends at 7 p.m. One can stop by for lunch, dinner, or even both. The event is set up as a drive-thru, so you can pick up a plate of North Carolina barbeque without getting out of your vehicle. Each plate can be purchased with a $10 donation, and contains delicious barbecue pork, a dinner roll, coleslaw and potato salad.
“This year we are excited to be hosting our 40th annual Crimestoppers BBQ. This event serves as our main fundraiser to continue providing cash rewards for tips leading to arrests. Our community has been generous supporters of this event each year, which ultimately helps everyone in our community,” said Tommy Hodge, secretary of the board for the Crime Stoppers program. He also mentioned how each year they gain a lot of traction, serving over 3,000 plates of delicious Southern Coals BBQ on average.
The Fayetteville/Cumberland County Crime Stoppers is not officially a part of any police department. It is a community volunteer program that assists in law enforcement and has the goal of reducing crime within the community. They also support the Spring Lake Police Department, Hope Mills Police Department, the Fayetteville Police Department, and the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office.
“While our primary role is to pay out cash rewards, we also provide funds to purchase and operate kiosks that are stationed around Cumberland County,” said Hodge. “These digital kiosks display pictures to increase awareness of wanted criminals and the likelihood of a tip that leads to arrest. We currently have three kiosks in high-traffic areas: the Fayetteville police department lobby, the courthouse lobby and the downtown bus terminal.”
It is local fundraisers like these that help Fayetteville/Cumberland County Crime Stoppers raise money for their program. It helps them be able to give their cash rewards to citizens who give them tips and to pay for their staff. Anyone can call them to provide anonymous information on any criminal activity. If an arrest is made from the tip provided, the caller will be eligible for a cash reward of up to $2,000. The Crime Stoppers can be reached at 910-483-8477 to provide confidential tips for any criminal activity.