Coast Crimestoppers use playing cards to solve cold cases

Mississippi Coast Crime Stoppers have found a new way to bring attention to cold cases – playing cards.

These aren’t ordinary playing cards. Each card in the deck has the face of a missing person or homicide victim whose case has not yet been solved.

Many people already have a deck of cards at home, which is why these cards will be passed out to inmates in Mississippi prisons. If inmates help solve a case, they could receive up to $2,500 for their honesty.

This is a group of people who have knowledge that many victim advocates cannot reach. These cards are giving hope to many families across the coast looking for closure.

“When the investigator contacted me and said that this was going to be in the prisons for the hope of getting an answer, this is an entirely new perspective,” said Lacy Moran, whose father, Joey Moran, has been missing since 2019. “I hope that they will talk and distribute the cards among all of them in order for us to get answers.”

“That would be great if we could find something like this because we just need some kind of closure,” said Lacy’s grandfather, who is Joey’s dad, Hodges Moran.

Patricia May, mother, and Chyna Crowther, sister, lost Ozell Addison Jr. in December of 2022 when he was found dead in Gulfport at only 19 years old. His homicide remains unsolved.

“The cards raise awareness to the community,” said Patricia May. “They raise awareness that this case still needs to be solved. As a family, it brings a little bit of relief to us to know that Crime Stoppers and law enforcement really care about us and they care about solving this case.”

You can learn more about Joey Moran and Ozell Addison Jr. cases, as well as other cold cases, at mscoastcrimestoppers.com.