Friday marked the seventy fifth anniversary of the FBI’s “Ten Most Wanted Fugitives” checklist — the famed rogue’s gallery that has fascinated Hollywood and true-crime buffs for many years.
Since its inception in 1950, the checklist has been an “invaluable publicity tool” that has helped “ensure the most odious criminals are brought to justice,” FBI Director Kash Patel mentioned in an announcement.
The mugshots of greater than 500 fugitives have earned their place within the company’s felony corridor of fame — with essentially the most infamous together with Ted Bundy and Osama Bin Laden.
FBI founding Director J. Edgar Hoover despatched the primary model of the checklist to the United Press Worldwide wire company. It was meant to drum up public curiosity in legislation enforcement and assist nab the FBI’s “toughest guys.”
The checklist quickly captured the creativeness of the American public, inspiring villains in numerous novels, comedian books, films and TV reveals, together with the hit collection “FBI: Most Wanted.”
“While the list began by featuring bank robbers and murder suspects fleeing state jurisdiction, it has evolved into a tool to search for major organized crime figures, cybercriminals, child predators, and white-collar criminals,” the company mentioned in an announcement launched Friday — alongside a commemorative brand specifically made for the event.
The present high 10 checklist consists of Bulgarian fraudstress Ruja Ignatava — the one lady within the notorious ranks — who earned a $5 million bounty for allegedly scamming traders all over the world out of billions of {dollars}.
It additionally consists of accused killer Omar Alexander Cardenas (bounty: $250,000), accused drug trafficker Fausto Isidro Meza-Flores (bounty: $5 million), and Haitian crime boss Vitel’Homme Harmless, wished for the kidnap of 17 American missionaries in 2021 (bounty: $2 million).
