Police officers like to ask questions. It is one of the best methods they have to obtain information that can help them solve crimes. They won’t always ask things directly, either. Detective movies starring the likes of Al Pacino or Robert De Niro as detectives often showed them out and about, casually chatting to people to try and find out what was happening on the street.
You need to think very carefully about whether you want to answer a police officer’s questions or not. However friendly they may seem, and however much it may seem like just a casual chat, the officer will be listening carefully for information they could use now or later.
What sort of questions could prove problematic?
Here are some of the sorts of questions that catch people out:
Do you know so and so? Officers like to work out people’s connections. It can help them formulate ideas about possible links that facilitated a crime.
Where were you? Telling the police where you were may allow them to place you at or near the scene of a crime, including one you know nothing about.
Have you ever been to? Maybe you grew up there or visited last year. It could help the police link you to a crime or someone they suspect of a crime, leading them to decide you may have been involved.
Did you hear about? Officers might drop a snippet of information that is not public knowledge. If your answer gives away that you already knew about the topic, it could work against you.
Remember that you do not have to answer police questions other than to identify yourself. The less you say, the less opportunity the police have to find something that they could end up using against you, even if you did nothing wrong.