Crime Stoppers hand out annual awards

PALMER — Mat-Su Crime Stoppers gave out its annual awards Friday night and Palmer made a clean sweep.

Police Officer of the Year went to Detective Sgt. Kelly Turney with the Palmer Police Department. Crime Stoppers board president Randy Luffberry said the award goes to the officer who made the best use of tips phoned, e-mailed or text-messaged to Crime Stoppers and actually solved a case.

Tips come in through the organization’s law enforcement coordinator, Alaska State Trooper Investigator Luis Nieves, and are forwarded on to whoever is working the case, Luffberry said.

Turney said this was his first time winning the Crime Stoppers award and thanked the organization for the help it provides.

“When it comes to putting the bad guys in jail, it’s easiest when you have the help of the community,” Turney said. “Sometimes even the smallest bit of information is the piece we needed.”

Call taker of the year went to Jackie Kotter, a dispatcher for the Palmer Police Department.

Luffberry said the call-taker is crucial to the work Crime Stoppers does since they are the ones who collect the information Nieves then passes along. They also make absolutely certain the tips are anonymous, if the tipster wishes to remain so.

“It requires a lot of diligence,” Luffberry said.

Luffberry also created a new category — so new the plaque wasn’t yet ready — to recognize a member of the Crime Stoppers board of directors. The inaugural award went to two board members — treasurer Penny Griffin and secretary Lindsey McGhan.

As treasurer, he said, Griffin is the watchdog of the organization’s finances and, “is not afraid to act like a watchdog.”

As secretary, McGhan keeps everyone on task, Luffberry said.

And, lastly, the Frontiersman accepted the award for media outlet of the year, an award it has received a number of times in the past.

“If we weren’t able to publish it, the Crime of the Week wouldn’t get reported,” Luffberry said.

Speaking of which — the most recent crime of the week seeks information regarding a death on the highway reported two weeks ago.

At 3:34 a.m. May 15, troopers responded to the Parks Highway at its intersection with Vine Road. There they found Scott Johnson lying face down in the road. No vehicles were on the highway nearby, though his motorcycle was found in the bushes with its engine seized. Troopers are investigating it as a homicide.

Crime Stoppers is offering up to $1,000 reward for information leading to an arrest in this case. Tips can be phoned in to troopers at 745-2131, Crime Stoppers at 745-3333.

Tips can also be submitted online at matsu-crimestoppers.org or via text message to CRIMES (274637) with the keyword MATSU in the message.

Contact Andrew Wellner at andrew.wellner@frontiersman.com or 352-2270.