Missing Persons

Question 1

There are a number of reasons for a person to go ‘absent or missing’. These include:

Answer 1

• Children or young people (predominantly teenage girls) who run away from home, normally for one or two days.
• Children who are missing through abduction (by a non-custodial parent, a stranger, or through other means such as internet grooming).
• Adults (predominantly men) who go absent, often in an attempt to escape from problems in their home lives.
• Vulnerable adults, such as those with dementia or mental illness.
• Adults who have been abducted, for example for purposes of sexual assault or people trafficking.

Question 2

A person will be categorised as “absent” if…

Answer 2

there seems to be no apparent risk, or he/she is simply not where expected.

Question 3

A person will be categorised as “missing” if…

Answer 3

his/her whereabouts cannot be established, and the circumstances are out of character, or the context suggests that he/she might subject of crime, or at risk of harm to him or herself or another.

Question 4

For all missing person reports the minimum intitial response should consist of…

Answer 4

Recording the incident
Conducting a risk assessment
Agreeing the first steps to first trace the missing person
Setting up a timeline set for reviewing decisions taken.

Question 5

Forensic evidence collection time for high and medium risk?

Answer 5

Forensic evidence should be collected as soon as possible before it is compromised or lost (24 hours for high, 7 days for medium)

Question 6

The first task in a ‘misper’ enquiry is to do what?

Answer 6

Conduct a risk assessment.

Information is required about the person and their circumstances prior to the disappearance, particularly any factors which indicate vulnerability and their life-style.

Question 7

The levels of risk suggested by the College of Policing are…

Answer 7

No apparent risk
Low risk
Medium risk
High risk

Children (under 18) are never considered as low risk

Question 8

Child Rescue Alert (CRA) procedures involve what?

Answer 8

These are used if there is suspicion that a child may be at risk of serious harm.

Involves seeking help from the public, e.g through television, radio, text messages, and other social and digital media, as well as the charity Missing People.