A Haines woman fed up with thefts from her local business recently decided to hold the thieves accountable by setting up security cameras, snapping photos, and publicly posting the images of the suspected perpetrators on social media.
Nicole Horton Holm, co-owner of Chilkoot Lake Tours, said she installed the cameras around the Chilkoot Lake dock after someone stole gas from two boats in late June. The perpetrators also removed hinges from a shed and pilfered tools.
On July 22, Holm posted about 12 photos on her Facebook account from a July 6 incident depicting four people jumping two gates, going onto the company’s boats, rifling through coolers, and removing items from the boats.
“I didn’t know any of them, but other people in town did, and it took about three minutes after I posted the pictures for names to start rolling in,” Holm said. “I had a great response from people. Most thought it was great to make it public and hold people accountable for their actions.”
Three of the people were clearly identified, and a fourth was named by a fellow member of the group, Holm said.
Holm said she decided to post the photos because she was “tired of the attitude of not wanting to make a scene, not wanting to cause a ripple.”
“Whether or not these people are kids or adults, they need to be held accountable. It needs to be public knowledge who they are and what they are doing,” Holm said. “When they apply for a job, I want it in peoples’ minds: ‘Oh isn’t that someone who…’”
In addition to posting on Facebook, Holm also gave the photos to law enforcement authorities.
Though the state park ranger is putting the case together because the incident occurred in Chilkoot Lake park, Haines Borough interim police chief Robert Griffiths said the department and the troopers are supporting the investigation.
Griffiths said Holm’s gathering of evidence and installation of security cameras “was an excellent example of the community taking steps to support law enforcement in our common mission to protect property from thieves and keep our community safe.”
The public posting of the security photos was also inventive, Griffiths said. “The use of a local Facebook posting to ‘crowd source’ the identity of the perpetrators is a bit unique, but we live in a changing world and must adapt our investigative methods to embrace new emerging technologies and social media.”
Holm said she hopes people will follow her lead and speak out about suspicious and illegal activities they see in the community.
“I’m not happy with the town I grew up in being in the state it is, of people stealing things from one another. This isn’t why I moved back here to raise my kids,” Holm said. “I think people just have a ‘don’t get involved’ attitude. ‘Not my circus, not my monkeys’ kind of deal. And if more people would step up and do the right thing, maybe people would think twice before doing the wrong thing.”