UK 'most wanted' website launched
An FBI-style website aimed at tracking the UK's most wanted crime suspects is being launched by Crimestoppers.
The charity's Most Wanted site will list all police appeals across the UK as well as photographs, CCTV footage and descriptions of wanted suspects.
The public will be able to view these details at www.mostwanted-uk.org and contact police by phone or online.
It will be the first time police have been able to receive crime tip-offs anonymously online, Crimestoppers says.
People accessing the site will be able to view pictures of the most wanted suspects in their own local communities as well as nationwide appeals.
I don't want trivia on that website and we've had a long process of testing this with a number of key forces
Dave Cording
Crimestoppers
If they recognise any of the suspects they can either call Crimestoppers anonymously or fill in a secure online form.
Dave Cording from Crimestoppers said the police would edit it the website.
"They have their own internal mechanisms for grading who should be on that website," he said.
"My concern is the same as everyone else: I don't want trivia on that website and we've had a long process of testing this with a number of key forces."
Mick Laurie, chief executive of Crimestoppers, said the site was a "major step forward".
It is astonishing this has never happened before
Nick Ross
Crimewatch
And Nick Ross, presenter of the BBC's Crimewatch programme, hailed it as the "biggest advance since the 'Wanted' poster".
He said: "It is astonishing this has never happened before. Apart from Crimewatch there is virtually no way of getting national publicity for most cases and many wanted people could just disappear - until now.
"Even the police have no effective way of communicating the huge number of wanted suspects."
Murder hunts
Suspects featured on the site include:
Ayub Khan, wanted in connection with a double murder in east London in August 2003.
He is described as aged 20-25, 5ft 6ins tall, with short black hair and a beard. He is of thin build and has a scar on the right side of his face. There is a £10,000 reward for information leading to his arrest and conviction.
James Francis Hurley, 42, a convicted murderer and armed robber who escaped while being transferred between prisons in February 1994.
He is described as being white and about 6ft tall.
Joseph Oduguwa, 42, wanted in connection with a substantial fraud. He is believed to have connections in Nigeria and may be in the African country.
He is described as being black, of stocky build, with short black hair and a beard.
Crimestoppers was set up in 1988, since when it has received more than 640,000 calls, resulting in more than 57,000 arrests and charges.
Every month it receives an average of 6,000 anonymous calls which lead to more than 500 arrests.
Story from BBC NEWS:
Published: 2005/11/17 10:01:53 GMT
© BBC MMV
An FBI-style website aimed at tracking the UK's most wanted crime suspects is being launched by Crimestoppers.
The charity's Most Wanted site will list all police appeals across the UK as well as photographs, CCTV footage and descriptions of wanted suspects.
The public will be able to view these details at www.mostwanted-uk.org and contact police by phone or online.
It will be the first time police have been able to receive crime tip-offs anonymously online, Crimestoppers says.
People accessing the site will be able to view pictures of the most wanted suspects in their own local communities as well as nationwide appeals.
I don't want trivia on that website and we've had a long process of testing this with a number of key forces
Dave Cording
Crimestoppers
If they recognise any of the suspects they can either call Crimestoppers anonymously or fill in a secure online form.
Dave Cording from Crimestoppers said the police would edit it the website.
"They have their own internal mechanisms for grading who should be on that website," he said.
"My concern is the same as everyone else: I don't want trivia on that website and we've had a long process of testing this with a number of key forces."
Mick Laurie, chief executive of Crimestoppers, said the site was a "major step forward".
It is astonishing this has never happened before
Nick Ross
Crimewatch
And Nick Ross, presenter of the BBC's Crimewatch programme, hailed it as the "biggest advance since the 'Wanted' poster".
He said: "It is astonishing this has never happened before. Apart from Crimewatch there is virtually no way of getting national publicity for most cases and many wanted people could just disappear - until now.
"Even the police have no effective way of communicating the huge number of wanted suspects."
Murder hunts
Suspects featured on the site include:
Ayub Khan, wanted in connection with a double murder in east London in August 2003.
He is described as aged 20-25, 5ft 6ins tall, with short black hair and a beard. He is of thin build and has a scar on the right side of his face. There is a £10,000 reward for information leading to his arrest and conviction.
James Francis Hurley, 42, a convicted murderer and armed robber who escaped while being transferred between prisons in February 1994.
He is described as being white and about 6ft tall.
Joseph Oduguwa, 42, wanted in connection with a substantial fraud. He is believed to have connections in Nigeria and may be in the African country.
He is described as being black, of stocky build, with short black hair and a beard.
Crimestoppers was set up in 1988, since when it has received more than 640,000 calls, resulting in more than 57,000 arrests and charges.
Every month it receives an average of 6,000 anonymous calls which lead to more than 500 arrests.
Story from BBC NEWS:
Published: 2005/11/17 10:01:53 GMT
© BBC MMV
