ABSTRACT
Analysis and the accurate interpretation of the criminal environment are essential to intelligence-led policing and crime control. This chapter examines information sources such as confidential informants and community intelligence and how they feed into the information collation process. The digital explosion since the 1980s has resulted in a revolution in police data recording. Crime reports and calls for service generally represent one source of data from the community. There is one area where neighbourhood policing could be the only viable option to gather useful community intelligence. Effective information collection and collation requires communication with the client or commander that originated the tasking and interpretation of their intelligence requirements. One way for agencies to improve target identification is to gain a better perspective on the relationship between their local crime problems and trends at the regional and national level. Interpreting the criminal environment usually begins with the collation of information sources, sometimes after a tasking from management.
