The Fayetteville Police Department is “thinking outside the box’’ as it looks for people with active arrest warrants for non-violent crimes to turn themselves in over the next three days.
The Police Department said people who meet that criteria and turn themselves in voluntarily will be released on a written promise to appear in court or on an unsecured bond with a new court date.
People can turn themselves in at any Police Department location or to any officer on Wednesday, Thursday or Friday, the department said in a release.
"We're thinking outside of the box,’’ Officer Jeremy Strickland, a spokesman for the Police Department, said Tuesday. “The Police Department has done this in the past. It was probably several years ago. We're publicly releasing a list of non-active warrants, something that hasn't been done in quite some time."
Strickland said the decision to roll out this initiative originated among the executive staff at the Police Department.
People can check faypd.com for a list of people with active arrest warrants. The list is compiled in alphabetical order by last name.
"We hope that people will take advantage of this opportunity as long as they qualify for an unsecured bond or written promise to appear," Strickland said. "They will just be processed and let go and given a new court date. That's not always the case when we arrest them ourselves. If the Police Department has to find these people and arrest them, they very well may not receive a written promise to appear or receive an unsecured bond."
Tips for locating someone with an active arrest warrant can be provided to Fayetteville/Cumberland County CrimeStoppers online at Fay-NCCrimestoppers.org or by calling 910-483-8477.
"All tips that lead to an arrest or charge can lead to a cash reward," Strickland said. "CrimeStoppers is 100% anonymous."
Michael Futch covers Fayetteville and education for CityView TODAY. He can be reached at mfutch@cityviewnc.com. Have a news tip? Email news@CityViewTODAY.com.
