A most wanted list is a list of criminals and alleged criminals who are believed to be at large and are identified as a law enforcement agency's highest priority for capture. The list can alert the public to be watchful, and generates publicity for the agency.
The FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives is a most wanted list maintained by the United States's Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The list arose from a conversation held in late 1949 between J. Edgar Hoover, Director of the FBI, and William Kinsey Hutchinson, International News Service editor-in-chief, who were discussing ways to promote capture of the FBI's "toughest guys". This discussion turned into a published article, which received so much positive publicity that on March 14, 1950, the FBI officially announced the list to increase law enforcement's ability to capture dangerous fugitives. The first person added to the list was Thomas J. Holden, a robber and member of the Holden–Keating Gang on the day of the list's inception.
Donald Eugene Webb was an American career criminal wanted for attempted burglary and the murder of police chief Gregory Adams in the small town of Saxonburg, Pennsylvania on December 4, 1980. It was only the second murder in the town's nearly 150-year history; the first murder occurred in 1842.
Robert William Fisher is an American fugitive wanted for allegedly killing his family and blowing up the house in which they lived in Scottsdale, Arizona, on April 10, 2001.
The FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives during the 2000s is a list, maintained for a sixth decade, of the Ten Most Wanted Fugitives of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation. At any given time, the FBI is actively searching for 12,000 fugitives. During the 2000s, 36 new fugitives were added to the list. By the close of the decade a total of 494 fugitives had been listed on the Top Ten list, of whom 463 have been captured or located.
The FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives during the 1990s is a list, maintained for a fifth decade, of the Ten Most Wanted Fugitives of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives during the 1980s is a list, maintained for a fourth decade, of the Ten Most Wanted Fugitives of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Jorge Alberto López Orozco, is a Mexican former fugitive. He was wanted for the murder of his girlfriend and her two children and unlawful flight to avoid prosecution in Elmore County, Idaho. On March 17, 2005, he became the 480th fugitive listed by the FBI placed on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list.
Jason Derek Brown is an American fugitive wanted for first degree murder and armed robbery in Phoenix, Arizona. On November 29, 2004, Brown allegedly shot and killed Robert Keith Palomares, a 24-year-old armored car guard outside a movie theater and then fled with the money. On December 8, 2007, he was named by the FBI as the 489th fugitive to be placed on its Ten Most Wanted list. He is considered to be armed and extremely dangerous. On September 7, 2022, he was removed from the Ten Most Wanted list without being captured, but he is still wanted. He was replaced on the list by Michael James Pratt. In 2022, a theatrical film about Brown's life was made, titled American Murderer, starring Tom Pelphrey as Brown, Ryan Phillippe, Idina Menzel, and Jacki Weaver.
Emigdio Preciado Jr. is an American criminal, gang member and a former fugitive who was added to the FBI's Top Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list on March 14, 2007. Preciado is the 485th fugitive to be placed on the list.
In law enforcement, a manhunt is an extensive and thorough search for a wanted and dangerous fugitive involving the use of police units, technology, and help from the public.
Richard Steve Goldberg is a convicted sex offender and a former fugitive who was added to the FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list on June 14, 2002. Goldberg is the 474th fugitive to be placed on the list. He was captured in Montreal, Canada on May 12, 2007, and subsequently convicted and sentenced to imprisonment of 20 years.
The FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives during the 2010s is a list, maintained for a seventh decade, of the Ten Most Wanted Fugitives of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation. At any given time, the FBI is actively searching for 12,000 fugitives. During the 2010s, 29 new fugitives were added to the list. By the close of the decade a total of 523 fugitives had been listed on the Top Ten list, of whom 488 have been captured or located.
Arthur Lee Washington Jr. is an American fugitive and former member of the Black Liberation Army wanted for the attempted murder of a New Jersey state trooper on April 12, 1989. Washington was added to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Top Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list on October 18, 1989. He remained on the list for over a decade. He was eventually dropped from the list on December 27, 2000 for no longer meeting the list criteria. He is still wanted by New Jersey State Police, although he is presumed deceased.
Robert Francis Van Wisse is an American criminal who was added to the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list in December 2016, in relation to a sexual assault and murder in Austin, Texas in September 1983. In January 2017, he surrendered to U.S. officials. On March 28, 2017, Van Wisse pleaded guilty to murder and was sentenced to 30 years in prison.
Santiago "Pucho" Villalba Mederos is an American former fugitive who was added to the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list on September 25, 2017. He was wanted for two murders in Tacoma, Washington, in 2010. Mederos was the 515th fugitive to be placed on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list. The FBI offered a reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to his capture. He was captured in Tenancingo, Mexico, on June 5, 2020.
Eugene K. Palmer is an American fugitive wanted for allegedly killing his daughter-in-law, Tammy Palmer, in Stony Point, New York, on September 24, 2012. On May 29, 2019, he was named by the FBI as the 523rd fugitive to be placed on its Ten Most Wanted list. On July 20, 2022, Palmer was removed from the FBI's Most Wanted Fugitives List. Despite his removal from the Top Ten List, Palmer remains a highly wanted fugitive, and has an International Interpol warrant issued against him.
The FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives during the 2020s is a list, maintained for an eighth decade, of the Ten Most Wanted Fugitives of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation. At any given time, the FBI is actively searching for 12,000 fugitives. As of November 15, 2023, nine new fugitives have been added to the list.
Yulan Adonay Archaga Carias is a Honduran fugitive, drug lord, and a suspected leader of the MS-13 gang in Honduras who was added to the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list on November 3, 2021. He is wanted for racketeering, narcotics trafficking, and firearms offenses. Archaga Carias is allegedly in charge of MS-13 for all of Honduras and is believed to be providing firearms, narcotics, and cash to gang members who are operating within the United States. He is also believed to be responsible for ordering the murders of rival gang members. Authorities believe he is still in Honduras.
Omar Alexander Cardenas is an American fugitive and suspected member of the Pierce Street Gang in Los Angeles who was added to the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list on July 20, 2022. He is wanted for murder and for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution, and is suspected by authorities to have fled to Mexico in order to avoid arrest. Cardenas was the 528th fugitive to be placed on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list. He replaced Eugene Palmer, who was removed from the list without being captured. The FBI is offering a reward of up to $250,000 for information leading to his capture.
