Bolo Program Puts $1 Million on the Table, Unveils Unprecedented Incentive for Community Members to Be on the Lookout for Canada’s Most Wanted Fugitives
23 Abril 2024 - 9:30AM
Stacks of cash equalling $1 million in rewards were on display
Tuesday as the Bolo Program announced a Top 25 Update as well
as a new initiative aimed at encouraging Canadians to be on the
lookout for Canada’s Top 25 most wanted fugitives.
Bolo’s newest #1 suspect was revealed to be
Michael Bebee, wanted for the brazen murder exactly nine months ago
of 29-year-old Toronto man Shamar Powell-Flowers. A reward of up to
$100,000 was announced for any information leading to Bebee’s
arrest.
“To those who know the location of Michael Bebee:
Shamar would have given you the benefit of the doubt, so we are
trying the same,” Shamar’s family said in a statement. “Maybe
you’ve been scared. Maybe you didn’t realize our extraordinary
pain. Maybe you thought this arrest wouldn’t matter. But here we
are, nine months later, locked in place, drowning in despair, and
pleading for someone to release us from this agony and allow us to
take the next step forward in this most awful journey.”
Additional rewards of up to $100,000 were announced
for the remaining Top 5 suspects, while rewards of up to
$50,000 were announced for 10 others scattered throughout the
updated Top 25 list, which brings together information about
most wanted suspects from across the country.
Combined, the 15 rewards equal an
unprecedented $1 million. As with all Bolo rewards, the
$1 million offered Tuesday will sit in a trust controlled by a
law firm until successful tips are submitted, leading to the
apprehensions of the fugitives.
Bolo Director Max Langlois was joined by Toronto
Police Service Chief Myron Demkiw, Toronto Crime Stoppers Chair
Sean Sportun, and various police partners in revealing the updated
Top 25 list.
During Tuesday’s news conference, Langlois
announced a new initiative on the Bolo website — boloprogram.org —
called the Bolo Lineup. The Bolo Lineup is an online contest aimed
at incentivizing Canadians to “be on the lookout” for fugitives.
Any Canadian resident aged 18 or older may participate in this
initiative by identifying fugitives in a series of lineups.
Participants will have a chance to collect one of 100 prizes,
including a $10,000 travel voucher, computers, gaming consoles,
tablets, and gift cards.
“The Bolo Program is incentivizing members of the
public to be on the lookout not only today, but in the days, weeks,
and months to come,” Bolo Director Max Langlois said. “How? By
taking a portion of the money we usually spend on these flashy
media campaigns and using it to reward people not only for calling
in the right tip, but for, quite simply, keeping their attention on
the campaign.”
“We work hand in hand with communities in an effort
to prevent these crimes. But when, despite our best efforts,
tragedy strikes, we do what we can to support the victims and
survivors left behind,” Toronto Police Chief Myron Demkiw said.
“And we work with our community partners — members of the media,
members of the public, and organizations like Bolo — to build
and restore not only actual safety, but that critical sense of
safety that should be felt by all. That is what we are doing
today.”
Thanks to Crime Stoppers programs, the Top 25
list allows tipsters to remain anonymous not only while sharing
information, but also while collecting their rewards, all without
ever speaking to an investigator.
"With Crime Stoppers, you remain anonymous.
Criminals don’t,” Toronto Crime Stoppers Chair Sean Sportun said.
“Together, we can create safer communities right across Canada, and
help those who have been hurt by these crimes take the next steps
forward in their most unfortunate journeys.”
For information on each case, visit
boloprogram.org.
About Bolo ProgramThe Bolo Program
is a breakthrough initiative leveraging social media, technology,
and innovative engagement to encourage citizens to be on the
lookout for Canada’s most wanted, so they can help keep their
communities safe. ‘BOLO’, which stands for “be on the lookout,” is
a commonly used law enforcement term to designate individuals who
are actively wanted.
Bolo reaches citizens at the right time, at the
right place, and by using the right means to encourage citizens to
be on the lookout. Bolo amplifies priority wanted notices for which
Canadian police services have already requested the public’s
assistance. In cooperation with Canadian police services and Crime
Stoppers, Bolo launches amplification campaigns to reach wider
audiences for these notices, on multiple platforms and over
extended periods of time, and offers major financial rewards as
incentives for citizens to be on the lookout and submit tips to the
authorities.
Media contact: info@boloprogram.org
An image accompanying this announcement is
available at
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/fcd62be4-4359-46aa-8c66-65eeecadf15b