When a young college student, Michael Carmen, was shot to death during a robbery at an Albuquerque, New Mexico gas station in July 1976, Detective Greg MacAleese had no idea who was responsible for the killing.

No witnesses came forward, and it appeared that the senseless and brutal shotgun slaying would remain unsolved.

MacAleese, who worked for a newspaper before joining the Albuquerque Police Department, knew something innovative would be necessary to encourage the public to participate and help solve the murder.

He decided he would guarantee anonymity for anyone who was willing to call him with information, as well as put up a cash reward from his own pockets to encourage someone to provide a lead that would help identify who was responsible for the murder of Carmen. In addition, MacAleese filmed a recreation of the crime to broadcast on television.

It seemed extreme to take such extraordinary steps to solve the killing of Carmen. It was a case that should have outraged the community and brought forth many witnesses.

Carmen was only two weeks away from getting married and had taken an extra shift at the gas station to give a co-worker the night off. When police responded to an emergency call, they found Carmen gravely wounded. He had been shot in the abdomen at point blank range with a 12-gauge shotgun.

The medical staff kept him alive for four hours, and during that time he tried to tell detectives who was responsible, but he didn't have the strength to form the words.

At that time, Albuquerque had one of the highest per capita crime rates in the country, and people were afraid to help the police.

MacAleese's plan to identify those responsible for killing Carmen worked. Within a few hours after the recreation of the murder was broadcast on television station KOAT, he received a phone call. The video image had triggered a memory of a person who heard a loud bang in the vicinity of the gas station and saw a car driving off. The caller told MacAleese the vehicle belonged to a resident in a nearby apartment complex.

After investigation, MacAleese and a team of detectives arrested two men within 72 hours and charged them with the murder of Carmen as well as a string of armed robberies.

MacAleese received other calls following the reenactment, including one that allowed police to solve the rape of a young woman. Realizing that this type of program might be useful in fighting crime, MacAleese convinced the Albuquerque Police Department to allow a group of citizens to establish the first Crime Stoppers program.

For his efforts, Detective MacAleese was recognized as Police officer of the Year. It is also interesting to note that since adopting Crime Stoppers, Albuquerque's crime rate dropped significantly and no longer is ranked in the list of 20 cities with the highest per capita crime rate in the United States.

Crime Stoppers of Central Indiana  was founded in 1985. Since its founding, Crime Stoppers of Central Indiana has never revealed the identity of a tipster.  During this time, thousands of dollars have been paid as rewards and thousands of felony arrests have been completed thanks to our tipsters. Help us keep our communities safe one anonymous tip at a time.