FINGERPRINTING EVENTS SCHEDULED FOR MAY 15^TH & 16^TH

A. Courtney Cox, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, announced several upcoming events in honor of National Missing Children’s Day and in support of the Attorney General’s Project Safe Childhood initiative. The media is asked to publicize the following upcoming events in advance, in order to promote awareness and attendance. The media is also invited to attend the events.

Operation Safe Kids fingerprinting events will be held at various locations in St. Clair, Madison and Monroe Counties on Friday, May 15, 2009, from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. and Saturday, May 16, 2009, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

The Livescan Child ID system, provided by the Secret Service, is a portable children’s identification system which produces a biographical document containing a photograph, digitized, inkless fingerprints and vital identification information. Parents receive the document for safekeeping, for use in the event of a child abduction or disappearance.

The locations for the events are: # Wal-Mart, 379 W. Pontoon Road, Granite City, IL- both days # YMCA, 7348 Goshen Road, Edwardsville, IL- both days # St. Clair Square Mall, Fairview Heights, IL- both days # YMCA, 284 North Seven Hills Road, O’Fallon, IL- both days # Columbia Market Place- 1000 Columbia Centre, Columbia, IL-both days # Lowes, 2501 Green Mount Commons, Belleville, IL- Friday ONLY # Home Depot, 5501 Belleville Crossing, Belleville, IL- Saturday ONLY

The following agencies will be participating in the events: The United States Attorney’s Office; the Secret Service; the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division; The United States Postal Inspection Service; the Fairview Heights Police Department; the Granite City Police Department; the Edwardsville Police Department; the Belleville Police Department; the O’Fallon Police Department; and the Columbia Police Department.

More information about the history of National Missing Children’s Day can be found on the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children website at: www.take25.org.