A PIONEERING crime-busting system set up in Yorkshire jails is set to go nationwide.

Crimestoppers in the county has a set up a system in prisons so inmates can give vital information about all kinds of crime – from drugs being smuggled into prison to armed robberies being planned on the outside.

It has been so successful here that it will be copied in all prisons across the UK by the end of the year.

Crimestoppers trialled the system in prisons, giving inmates the chance to phone them up and pass on the information and to receive a reward without people knowing who made the call.

Every prisoner has a PIN number they use each time they make a call to friends and relatives – but a special PIN number before a Crimestoppers call means prison staff have no idea who has made that call.

The reward is payable at a bank using a code number so the prisoner can get the money after being released from jail or it can be picked up by someone they trust.

The system is run jointly by Crimestoppers, the police, the Prison Authority and the Yorkshire Area Search Team (YAST), which searches inmates and visitors.

It is now being rolled out to all prisons in Yorkshire and leaflets explaining how the system works are being given out.

The main aim is to find drugs being smuggled into prisons along with mobile phones that inmates are still using to organise criminal activities outside.

But inmates can also reveal details about crimes happening in the outside world.

Kevin Mosley, regional co-ordinator for Crimestoppers, said: “This system was pioneered from the Crimestoppers office in West Yorkshire. All prisoners are given a Crimestoppers leaflet when they arrive at the prison and when they leave.

“But all inmates also receive a leaflet at the same time when they are posted under every cell door.

“The new partnership with YAST has proved invaluable as they have acted on several pieces of Crimestoppers information, along with the police.

“This has led to the recovery of both drugs and mobile phones inside prisons, but it has also recovered items of illegal goods outside the prison before they have even reached the prison boundary.

“Several people on the outside are now looking forward to a grim future on the inside.

“There are lots of people within the prison population that possess key information that could assist the police to crack crimes old and new. Inmates will now be able to ring Crimestoppers and pass that information without fear of being identified.”

Det Chief Insp Paul Fountain, director of intelligence for West Yorkshire Police, said: “The partnership between Crimestoppers and the Prison Service is further evidence that everyone will work together to tackle crime.

“We are determined to make sure that prison does not become a hiding place for certain inmates to try and continue their illegal activities.

“On the other side of the coin, it is vital that we afford everyone, wherever they are, the opportunity to help the community by giving information on crime and those who are responsible for it.”

Steve Harrison, head of YAST, said: “Our team works across the whole of the Yorkshire and Humber region.

“Our highly-trained dogs play a key role in detecting individuals in possession of drugs, enabling us to help offenders in custody address their offender issues in a safer environment by stopping drugs coming into prisons.

“This partnership with Crimestoppers and the development of information allows us to provide an effective and focused approach to tackling crime.”