State offering $3,000 for information in top 12 cold cases

The state launched a program Wednesday to seek new leads in its top 12 cold cases — with one being from Tarrant County.

Gov. Greg Abbott’s office, the Texas Department of Public Safety and Texas Crime Stoppers announced a reward program that will pay up to $3,000 for information leading to an arrest.

Among the cases is the death of Marianne Wilkinson, who was killed in 2007 in North Richland Hills while answering her doorbell. Investigators believed that Wilkinson wasn’t the intended target and that the shooting was a case of mistaken identity. A person of interest was shot and killed in 2013 in Oklahoma City.

“It is a tremendous affront to society when a heinous crime like murder goes unsolved, and the state of Texas has an obligation to the victims and our communities to help ensure justice is ultimately served,” Abbott said in a press release. “This new reward program was created to help identify the perpetrators of these crimes and provide overdue closure in these cases.”

To qualify for the reward, those with information have to call the Crime Stoppers hotline at 800-252-8477. Tips can be left anonymously, and tipsters can use a tip number instead of a name.

This article includes material from the Star-Telegram archives.

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This story was originally published February 15, 2017 at 9:07 PM with the headline "State offering $3,000 for information in top 12 cold cases."