Abstract
Any member of the society who is found guilty of breaking the law has measurable penalties in an ideal society ruled by laws. Members of society are traditionally expected to report any instances of law and order violations to the proper law enforcement authorities. Reporting crimes in the society (Nigeria) used to need visiting to any of the law enforcement agencies' offices (e.g., police, neighborhood corps) to file a report, which made anonymity nearly impossible. However, as technology advanced, more options for reporting crimes became available, ranging from telegraph, special radio communication, and specialized phone lines to more responsive and pervasive technological application platforms (mobile and mobile software applications). This project will create a comprehensive mobile platform that will report all types of crimes, be open to the public, suggestive (search for entities), interpretative, and instructive. It also allows those who choose to remain anonymous when reporting crimes to do so.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of Study
As society evolves and human motives and interactions become more diverse, the need to prevent crime and maintain law and order develops. An ideal society is governed by collectively agreed-upon laws and regulations, as well as measured penalties for anyone found guilty of flouting any part of the legal architecture.
Security apparatuses, in addition to a society's legal framework, enforce the law in the purpose of maintaining law and order. The legal infrastructures govern how far law enforcement agencies can act or protect the common interests of society's citizens. It also outlines the members of society's civic responsibilities and human rights (Phuthego, 2021).
Members of society are expected to report any instances of law and order violations to the proper civil and military security authorities. Reported cases should also be properly gathered, assessed, and investigated in order to reach a more conclusive and justifiable conclusion. Before accused persons are charged in a law court and fairly prosecuted, evidence is collected, safeguarded, and thoroughly analyzed. Investigations are conducted without fear of retaliation or favoritism. In reality, any attempt to obstruct due process during a criminal inquiry is illegal and punished under the law.
The majority of the time, the process of reporting and investigating crimes in society has been manual. Individuals with complaints will go to any security agent's office (e.g., police, neighborhood corps) to notify and write down matters that require their attention. Security officers will raise an incident form in these offices and ask the reporter to fill out the required sections. The security agents will also ask the reporter some insightful questions and take notes on the preliminary investigation. Suggestions for evidence will be acknowledged, and more investigations will be conducted, as well as fresh evidence being collected, assessed, and safeguarded (Smith 2017).
The advancement of technology has opened up new avenues for utilizing the many benefits of information technology in crime reporting. Various technology platforms have been developed to aid in the reporting, response, and investigation of crime incidents. From telegraphs, specific radio communications, and dedicated phone lines, technology applications have evolved into more responsive and pervasive platforms (mobile and mobile software applications). The majority of people in today's society have mobile devices that allow them to easily access the internet. As a result, the mobile strategy is the most cost-effective and open way to report crime, with far-reaching advantages and coverage. Despite numerous attempts made throughout the world in this area, there is still no popular and responsive mechanism for reporting crime in Nigeria. The limited platforms accessible in Nigeria (such as Amebo and Linda Ikeji) are blogs and do not serve the objective of properly reporting, assessing, and researching numerous crimes in Nigeria. The respective platforms provided by the Economic Financial Crime Commission (EFFC) and the Investigation of Crime and Corrupt Practices (ICPC) come close to it. They provide avenues to report crime incidences but investigation and response are towards financial crimes.
This platform excludes incidents of murder, violence, or harassment, which are more typically recorded at local police stations than financial crimes reported at the EFFC and ICPC combined (McCormack et al, 2017)
These institutions and platforms specialize in financial crime, and their operations are so closely guarded that the processes and results of investigations are not shared with other security agencies or the general public.
The systems that are currently accessible fall well short of how technology could be used to report crimes. The platforms are not well-known, and they are difficult to utilize for ordinary people. The platforms are unidirectional in the sense that they do not provide members with feedback.
We're excited to create a comprehensive mobile platform that reports all types of crimes, is accessible to the general public, is suggestive (search for entities), interpretative, and enlightening. The platform will allow multiple security agencies to communicate and gather evidence, as well as mobilize members of the public for certain causes, all of which will help to improve policing, crime prevention, and investigation.
We expect that this effort would fill in the gaps in Nigeria's crime reporting and investigation information area.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The most well-known crime reporting services are unbalanced and difficult to use. Reporting crimes to security organizations is still an extremely difficult process. In addition, the platforms are unidirectional in that they do not provide feedback to society members. Existing platforms do not support sharing of relevant information with other security agencies, presumably because the owners of these platforms want all the credit, whereas security is actually reinforced when meaningful and relevant information is shared among security stakeholders in order to provide excellent service. All of this casts doubt on our legal system and makes it irresponsible. We propose an all-encompassing solution.
1.3 Aim and Objectives of Study
To create a smartphone application that illustrates that reporting, analyzing, and investigating crimes at Niger State Polytechnic, Zungeru should not be difficult, and that the model may be used to create additional crime reporting platforms.
Our goal is to create a system that allows people to report all types of crimes, receive comments, and keep the investigation and corrective process going.
1.4 Significance of the Study
The enhanced data quality of the incident-based reporting system will be of significant benefit to state and local governing bodies, criminal justice agencies, and the public. Data from the incident-based system will enhance both strategic and tactical decision making in criminal justice.
Because incident-based data will provide a more accurate picture of a community’s crime patterns, decisions regarding law enforcement, judicial, and correctional resources can be made based on empirical data. Similarly, the level of detail provided by incident-based data can assist law enforcement agencies and the community to identify crime problems in their community such as:
• Crime hotspots
• Populations who are at risk and
• Drug and alcohol problems.
Crime prevention strategies may then be developed and evaluated based on empirical evidence.
This study will also assist policy analyst to understand both factors that impedes the efficiency and effectiveness of the police and the ways by which the situation could be improved upon so as to bring crime and disorders in the society to its barest minimum. Finally, this study will go a long way in contributing to the knowledge of police work. Besides, other researchers and students in higher institutions especially those in sociology department can derive various secondary data from this study.
1.5 Scope of the Study
We will create a smartphone app that will serve as a reporting platform for all types of crimes. We'll also set up a platform where different security agencies and their representatives may register, as well as a dashboard where they can view and interpret various report incidents. Without fear or intimidation, the general public will be able to report, get comments, and evaluate the progress of reported incidents. The application will be data-driven, with a responsive and consistent user experience.
The programs will be available on desktops and other mobile devices over the internet. There will be no extra hardware requirements, and the evaluation will be primarily experimental.
1.6 Limitation of the Study
This project was constrained by the following factors:
(a) Financial Constraints
Bearing in mind the economic state of the nation, it was found difficult in making both ends meet, because of the exorbitant nature of things nowadays in travelling for the collection of data needed for the project.
(b) Time Constraints
Looking at the interval between the resumption and vacation of the final semester for the project to be completed, the time given seemed to be short for the collection of required information for better work to be done.
(c) Non-Availability of Material
During this project, it was noticed that the required materials needed for the project are not documented. Those that were documented lacked storage facilities where they can be reached.
