Schuylkill County District Attorney Karen Byrnes-Noon and Chief County Detective Dennis Clark are asking all Schuylkill County residents to utilize the county's crime/drug tip hot line.

"Our hot line provides Schuylkill residents an anonymous method of contacting authorities regarding matters of possible drug or illegal activity," said Clark, who recalled many success stories as a result of tips left via the hot line. "All information received is either given to our county's drug task force or forwarded to local police departments."They said that the hot line ((800) 414-1406 or (570) 622-4228) is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for any Schuylkill resident to call in and leave a message."It is important for all residents to report suspected illegal activity," said Byrnes-Noon. "Nosy neighbors aren't always bad neighbors.""All information given is valuable," said Byrnes-Noon. "We value, use and keep track all the information given to us via the hot line.""The information is received by our county detectives, which act upon, document or pass the tip on to the proper police department," said Byrnes-Noon. "If needed, we combine our resources within local police departments to provide surveillance, technical advice or to simply help each other in the investigation.""The information also helps us keep track of troublesome areas as well as times most offenses are occurring," said Clark.They also pointed out a few warning signs that your neighbor might be involved in illegal activities. Some signs include a constant rotation of people or strangers stopping for short periods of time, as well as unemployed individuals buying many expensive items."Although anonymous tips aren't admissible in court, the information is still highly valued by police and can be used to build a case," said Clark. "The number also saves the county money by combining and offering countywide resources to all local police departments."Byrnes-Noon added that the county's website (www.co.schuylkill.pa.us/info) lists the names (and sometimes faces) of people who have warrants out for their arrest.Another number to call to report crime is Pennsylvania's Crime Stoppers number: 1-800-4PA-TIPS. All callers remain anonymous and could be eligible for a cash reward.Residents are asked to leave as much information as possible, to include names (if known), times and vehicle makes, models and even plate numbers.