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Europol Sends Postcards to Most-Wanted Criminals

Summer: a perfect time to send postcards, right? Apparently Europol, the European law enforcement agency, thinks so. They've been publishing "postcards" addressed to some of their most-wanted criminals, giving a whole new meaning to the phrase "wish you were here!"

Why postcards? According to an NPR report, Europol is hoping that "increased awareness will lead to more arrests." The cards can be found on the Europe's Most Wanted Fugitives website, decorated with colorful illustrations (often with an ominous pair of handcuffs included somewhere in them). The messages read as tongue-in-cheek pleas for criminals to return: "Dear Marko, the waters of the Adriatic are missing you. Come sail with us for a trip you will never forget! Regards, the Police."

In addition to reading the postcards, visitors to the Europe's Most Wanted Fugitives page can find a pictures of the fugitives and read more about them. Those targeted by the cards "are accused of serious crimes in 21 European Union countries and are believed to be outside of the countries where they allegedly committed the crimes," writes Merrit Kennedy for NPR. And while "it's highly implausible that the fugitives will answer the fawning messages from law enforcement," such methods have proved successful in the past: "European authorities say crowdsourcing has become increasingly important as a law-enforcement tool."

Potential Preaching Angles: Let's take a second (or many!) to be thankful that God reaches out to us not with ominous messages, threatening us to return or else—but rather with patience and love, drawing us back to himself.

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