FBI Fugitives on Digital Billboards
DIGITAL BILLBOARDS Big Apple Joins National Initiative | |||
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Credit goes to our partner Clear Channel Outdoor, an advertising company providing this free public service as part of our national digital billboard initiative. The announcement was made this morning during a live segment on NBC’s “The Today Show,” as the faces of three fugitives wanted for crimes in the New York region flashed across the 30- by 40-foot screen and were seen by millions of television viewers. “When the FBI asked us to expand our billboard program to Times Square, we agreed immediately,” said Clear Channel executive Harry Coghlan. “This important initiative will now reach the thousands of people who pass through Times Square each day.” The digital billboard initiative began in 2007, when Clear Channel approached us with the idea of using its billboards to help catch criminals, rescue kidnap victims, and provide high-priority security messages. Unlike traditional roadside signs, digital billboards can be posted electronically at a moment’s notice—often right after a crime is committed. The national initiative was launched with 100 billboards in 23 cities. Since then, three other organizations have joined the partnership—Adams Outdoor, Lamar Advertising, and the Outdoor Advertising Association of Georgia. As a result, we now have access to more than 1,500 billboards in more than 40 states nationwide. Most importantly, the initiative is working. At least 30 cases have been solved as a direct result of digital billboard publicity, and many others have been solved through the Bureau’s overall publicity efforts that included the billboards. The first three fugitives posted on the Times Square billboard are Emerson Guzman, wanted for narcotics distribution; Yvette Torres, wanted for international parental kidnapping; and Tawan Hines, wanted for narcotics conspiracy. Here are a few of the cases where billboards have helped us make arrests:
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The digital billboards—in most cases it’s used to catch fugitives. And whether they're fugitives from justice at the federal level, or whether it's at the state or local level, these individuals are posted in the 45 field offices that are participating in the program.
The digital billboard is actually, it's using digital technology where we have a template that is created by the billboard company. Actually the very first template was created by Clear Channel; we use the same template for all of our four partners. A fugitive is actually posted, giving indentifying information, and just asking for the community to provide tips and information where we can take those leads and continue with the investigation.
A bulletin is usually posted—where one of our task forces, and that's usually where it comes from, between our partnerships with the federal, state and local agencies—where we have a fugitive from justice. That individual will be brought to our attention and then we will request that individual be posted on a local billboard, again with one of our four digital billboard affiliates. And from there, they actually post it pretty much at the drop of a dime.
What it means for the FBI: it now takes our investigation and adds that sixth man. The sixth man in basketball is very important and most of the time it's the audience. In a situation like this it lends eyes and ears to our investigations because it provides additional information that we just may not be able to run across in our day-to-day operation.
Moving forward I think when I look back over the year and a half that we've started this initiative, we've brought on four companies and I believe in the pipeline there are an additional two or three companies that are looking to partner. So, if I had to say where I would like to see this go is actually all digital billboards companies coming on board and participating.
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