Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, April 18, 1990 TAG: 9004180276
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Los Angeles Times
DATELINE: LOS ANGELES LENGTH: Medium
The 440-member California Bankers Association paid $44,000 to run a full-page advertisement on the back of the first section of Monday editions of the Los Angeles Times.
Southern California is considered by law enforcement officials to be the world's "bank robbery capital," and both financial institutions and law enforcement agencies have been seeking ways to combat the crime - which occurs on the average of eight times a day in the region.
While investigation by newspaper is not a wholly new approach - detectives are notorious among reporters for calling with story tips when their investigations might be helped by publicity and dodging calls when their purposes are better served by secrecy - the purchase of advertising space by victims seeking criminals does represent something of a breakthrough.
"We wanted to go above and beyond and do something that would be of assistance to law enforcement," said Edmund Pistey, chairman of the security committee of the California Bankers Association.
Nancy Evans, public affairs director for the bankers group, said the ad was being tested as a pilot effort that may be repeated if it proves succesful.
"We've got these great photos, and the missing link is people to identify them," Evans said. "The general public has been the missing link."
The 15 suspects chosen for the ad represented the best-quality photos available, officials said. The photo of a 16th man also appears, but he was captured before the ad went to press. All suspects are male and suspected of being repeat offenders.
The ad - essentially a group "wanted" poster - also includes a brief description of each alleged offender and his principal operating area. Several of the photos offer a remarkably distinct view of the suspected robber in action, some walking away with what appear to be money bags in their hands. One appears to be brandishing a revolver. Another is shown reading a newspaper with one hand while cradling the loot with the other.
"It's along the lines of `Most Wanted' and `Unsolved Mysteries,' those shows which are getting more and more positive responses all the time," said Dennis Tedder, vice president in charge of security for Southern California at the Bank of America.
Said Mark Llewellyn, supervisory special agent in charge of bank robberies for the Los Angeles FBI office: "Based on these pictures, somebody out there has got to know them."
By late afternoon, dozens of people had called various law enforcement authorities with tips - some good and some, in the words of one agent, "very, very far-out."
by CNB