The money and the tips keep rolling in.

Leadership Selma-Dallas County donated $5,400 from the second annual Billy Atchison Memorial Fish Fry on April 30 to Crime Stoppers, an anonymous crime tip hotline through the Dallas County Sheriff’s Department.

“We’re only going to be as good as the informants,” said Henry Moore Jr., Crime Stoppers president. “That’s the thing that helps us most.”

Crime Stoppers pays up to $1,000 for information leading to an arrest, but all money given to informants comes from donations from business, members of the community and proceeds from the fish fry.

“It’s the citizens that are buying the fish which provides the funding for Crime Stoppers,” said Lee Calame, Leadership Selma-Dallas County member. “So, it’s the citizens of Selma and Dallas County that are coming together to clean the streets up, even though it’s in an indirect way.”

From its creation in 2004, Crime Stoppers led to four arrests from 2004 until 2008, and from 2008 until present, it has led to 25 arrests.

“Leadership Selma, in the last two years, has done a wonderful job in giving us funds that are desperately needed to fight crime in Selma and Dallas County,” said Dallas County’s Department Sgt. John Hatfield. “With this money, we can continue to fight crime.”

How does Crime Stoppers work?

Anyone with information pertaining to a criminal event calls the anonymous Crime Stoppers line, 877-3530 or 866-44-CRIME.

The officer takes the information to the police or deputies. Each informant chooses a number as their identification each time they call.

This number, known only to the informant, Hatfield and a designated bank teller at Regions Bank, is also linked to how informants are paid up to $1,000 for tips.

Payments are based on the severity of the crime. Murder is the top tier and the payments continue down.

Billy Atchinson died Aug. 31, 2008 from lung cancer.

Atchinson worked as business office manager for Alabama Power Company was one of the members of Selma-Dallas County Leadership class VIII who created Crime Stoppers.

He served the community as a member of ArtsRevive, Leadership Selma, co-chaired the American Cancer Society Relay for Life Walk for a Cure in 2008 and on the Selma/ Dallas County Economic Development Authority Board of Directors.

The fish fry collected $6,000 last year.