Crime Stoppers of Tampa Bay is now offering crime updates via Twitter.  Followers will receive regular updates on unsolved crimes and wanted fugitives from Hillsborough and Pasco counties. 

Crime Stoppers of Tampa Bay works with over 30 local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies to inform the public of unsolved crimes and wanted fugitives, and obtains information anonymously to assist those agencies in their criminal investigations.  Anonymous tips received by Crime Stoppers that result in arrests are eligible for cash rewards of up to $1000.

To follow Crime Stoppers of Tampa Bay on Twitter , just go to http://www.twitter.com/crimestopperstb .

On January 1, 2010, Crime Stoppers of Tampa Bay Florida received an anonymous tip about Jose Ramon Fernandez, who was wanted in Hillsborough County for Violation of Probation for Lewd and Lascivious Battery on a Child 12 – 15 years of age and Failure to Redeliver Leased Property, and his possible whereabouts in the Philadelphia, PA area. Fernandez is a Florida registered lifetime sex offender who absconded from probation. Fernandez is also a certified Latin Kings gang member with approximately 35 prior arrests in Florida, New York, and Georgia to include sexual battery, narcotics, assault, burglary, forgery, and domestic violence.

Deputy Lisa Haber, Crime Stoppers Law Enforcement Coordinator, immediately sought the assistance of the U.S. Marshals Service Florida Regional Fugitive Task Force in Tampa to follow up on the tip. On January 16, 2010, deputies from the Florida Regional Fugitive Task Force Tampa Office requested that a collateral investigation be initiated to assist in locating and apprehending Fernandez.

             On February 2, 2010, deputies from the Eastern Pennsylvania Violent Crimes Fugitive Task Force interviewed the suspect’s sister. In summary, she stated that Fernandez was residing in Philadelphia, but she was unsure of the exact location. She also stated she spoke with the suspect on a regular basis, up to two times a week.

           On February 12, 2010, deputies and task force officers went to the address of 4048 "G" Street in Philadelphia, to investigate the whereabouts of Fernandez. This address was an auto body shop where deputy marshals believed Fernandez was working. Upon entering the body shop, the supervisor stated only one other employee was working. Deputies located this employee and identified him as fugitive Jose Ramon Fernandez.

          Fernandez was arrested without incident based upon his Florida warrant and was taken into federal custody.  The district sex offense investigative coordinator (SOIC) in Philadelphia mirandized Fernandez and conducted a consensual interview. Based upon the Task Force’s investigation and Fernandez’s statements, Fernandez was federally charged with a violation of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006 (18 USC 2250). This case was the Eastern District of Pennsylvania’s first such case since the law was enacted in 2006. Fernandez is currently being held without bail in the Federal Detention Center (FDC) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania awaiting his federal prosecution.

               This case demonstrates the importance of citizen informant information provided to law enforcement through community based programs like Crime Stoppers to keep our communities safe from criminal predators.  For more information on the U.S. Marshals Service Fugitive Task Forces, go to http://www.usmarshals.gov/investigations/taskfrcs/tskforcs.htm .