$5G reward offered in 1974 Revere cold case

REVERE - Leigh Savoie was 10 years old when he left his State Road home to shine shoes, hoping to buy his mother an Easter present. It was April 7, 1974 - the last time anybody saw him.

Savoie's disappearance has remained a mystery. On Wednesday, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley and Revere Police Chief Terence Reardon jointly announced that a $5,000 reward has been offered in connection with the cold case.

The Carole Sund/Carrington Foundation, an independent private agency that provides awards in missing persons cases, has posted the reward for inf-ormation leading to Savoie's return or the prosecution of a suspect in his abduction.

"We are pleased that the Carole Sund/Carrington Foundation has provided funding in order to aid us in pursuing a case that we and they consider very much active and worthy of our best efforts throughout this passage of time," Reardon said. "We request that anyone having any information, no matter how trivial, regarding this case contact us in order to contribute to its successful resolution."

Conley echoed that sentiment. "As long as there's hope - hope of finding Leigh or hope of finding justice for him - we will not rest," he said. "With law enforcement resources bolstered by the Carole Sund/Carrington Foundation, and with the public's assistance, we have a chance to write this story's final chapter."

Savoie was last seen wearing blue pants, a blue sweater, brown shoes, and a white shirt reading, "Try it, you'll like it." He stood about four feet tall and weighed approximately 60 lbs. He had brown hair and brown eyes.

"Savoie sometimes shined shoes at nearby Suffolk Downs. On the day he disappeared, he left home with his shoeshine kit. Later the same afternoon, the owner of a Revere restaurant returned the kit to Savoie's home, saying the boy had dropped it off earlier in the day on his way to Revere Beach," said Conley spokesman Jake Wark.

Today, Savoie would be 45 years old.

Revere Police are investigating the case with the assistance of State Police homicide detectives assigned to Conley's office. In the absence of other information, the boy is currently classified as missing; should investigators develop substantive evidence that he was a victim of homicide, State Police will take the lead, Wark said.

Anyone with information on Savoie's disappearance is urged to call Revere Police at 781-286-8203 or State Police at 617-727-8817. Those familiar with the boy or his neighborhood in the early 1970s are also asked to call.

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