Cold Case: Playing Cards
(WCCO) -- Minnesota prisons will soon be flooded with 10,000 decks of playing cards. These are not typical cards but rather ones with the photos of 52 murder victims and missing persons printed on them, along with information about the crimes.
A Florida cold case detective came up with the idea a couple of years ago and it has been getting success in the Sunshine State. So far, at least four cases have been cracked, thanks to inmates who dropped a dime.
Minnesota investigators are excited about the opportunity to have similar success here. The cards have photos submitted by local law enforcement agencies throughout the state which first obtained permission from the victims' families. The card program is coordinated by the Minnesota Department of Corrections and the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.
BCA Superintendent Tim O'Malley says it makes sense to go behind bars where there is likely to be information about unsolved crimes -- the equivalent of conducting 10,000 interviews at once.
The Minnesota cards are expected to be delivered by the middle of June. We will keep you posted on their success.
