Florida inmates are about to receive decks of playing cards that feature information on unsolved homicides and missing persons to help authorities crack the state's toughest cold cases.
Florida's top prosecutor hopes a few hot hands can solve some of the state's coldest cases. State Attorney General Ashley Moody said she plans to distribute 5,000 decks of cards inside jails and prisons featuring photos and information about unsolved crimes – including homicides and missing-persons cases. In a statement announcing the initiative, Moody said she hopes the cards will jog some old memories that could spur fresh leads.
Connecticut investigators, officials said, solved 20 cold cases through the initiative. South Carolina dealt the cards and cracked eight stalled investigations. Florida will offer $9,500 jackpots for tips that result in arrests, and informants can maintain their anonymity. Moody noted that a prior version of the program launched in 2007 helped to solve a Florida murder. Construction workers found Ingrid Lugo, 34, dead in a retention pond in Bradenton, about 45 miles south of Tampa, in 2004.
According to the nonprofit Project Cold Case, the rate at which homicides are being solved in the U.S. has declined by more than 20% over the past five decades. More than 72% of homicides were solved in 1980 compared to just 51% in 2021. To address this, Moody announced in February a new state cold case investigations unit.
This effort aims to address some of Florida's most haunting cold case homicides,' Moody said in a statement. 'By spotlighting these cases within correctional and detention facilities, the collective hope is to generate leads that will aid in solving them, offering much-needed closure to the families and loved ones of the victims.'
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