Cook County Crime Stoppers Chairman George McDade to retire next month
Every week, Cook County crime stoppers highlight unsolved crimes, searching for information.
The driving force behind the organization is about to step down after 30 years.
George McDade is searching for a killer.
He's looking for information to solve the murder of 14-year-old Vernado Jones Jr. The teen was killed on July 4, 2020, in a park near 61st and a Carpenter.
But McDade is not a police officer. He's the chairman of Cook County Crime Stoppers.
"Been with Cook County Crime Stoppers since 1995, 30 years," he said.
In that time, he led volunteers in handing out flyers where crimes happened.
McDade says the group has been successful, specifically because they are not police officers.
"Some people just will not talk to the police. Right or wrong, but there are people out there who would refuse to give any information to the police. They have it, they refuse to give it," he said.
He says that since Cook County Crime Stoppers started in 1985, the group has taken over 14,000 tips and helped solve 27 to 2,800 cases, leading to around 3,000 arrests.
The grandmother of Vernado Jones Jr. is hoping his case becomes part of those successful statistics.
Pamela King called crime stoppers looking for one thing: justice.
"I want to see the person that's held accountable put in jail for a very, very long time. That would be justice for me," she said.
Family members like King are one source of Crime Stoppers' cases, but so are police.
"They say, hey, we got a case; we know there's information out there, but they just won't talk to us. Will you go do it?" McDade said.
This is one of the last cases McDade will handle as Crime Stoppers chairman. He'll retire on April 1.
"You gotta know when to retire," McDade said. "It chips away at you little by little by little. There are cases I know. I wish I had more time. There are cases out there that should be solved."
After he's gone, Cook County Crime Stoppers will continue under a new leader trying to solve the next crime.
"The victim is so thankful when you help them, and that's what it's about," McDade said.
Crime Stoppers always offer a reward for information, but McDade says surprisingly, many people don't claim the money. They just want to help.
All tipsters who submit information to the organization will remain anonymous.
