Steps to Solving Missing Person Files
1. Contact your Local Law Enforcement Agency
1. When faced with solving a missing person file situation, swift action is crucial. Start by contacting your local law enforcement agency to file a missing person’s report. Provide essential information such as the individual’s full name, date of birth, birthplace, and current/previous addresses. Detail the physical description, including height, weight, age, and any distinctive markings. Capture the person’s habits, personality traits, and recent photo. Document details about their clothing at the time of disappearance and trip plans on the day they went missing, including vehicle information. Specify the last sighting’s time, location, and the person’s demeanor. Include overall health details, medical problems, and potential contacts. After filing the report, request the file number and contact information for the assigned investigator. This comprehensive checklist, adapted with permission, ensures you provide law enforcement with critical details, increasing the chances of locating the missing person.
2. Contact a Private Investigation Firm
Law enforcement can’t always spend the hours on a missing persons file so it is critical you contact a local Private Investigation firm. When you do this the Private Investigator will be able to spend as much time as your willing to put into it for finding the missing loved one. Also, the firm will dedicate all resources and has access to many Private Investigators for manpower, and expertise in skip tracing. It is important to relay all information you have given to police to ensure the Private Investigator has all information relating to the case. Sometimes, the most irrelevant information can be critical in finding a missing person.
3. Get Boots on the Ground
3. It is key the Private Investigator gets boots on the ground. This includes, conducting interviews with all people who knew the individual, last seen the individual, and see if they can find any leads. Furthermore, it helps if you can assist the Investigator with doing this.
4. Re-trace Last Known Location of the Missing Person
The Private Investigator will need to attempt to re-trace the steps of the missing person, attain cell phone pings from the police, and ask many businesses/condos for surveillance footage for the last known locations of the missing person. Key areas, and frequented areas should be scanned throughly.
5. Communication
It is important that any new information that comes forth to you that relates to the investigation is shared with the investigator. Time is of the essence, and it is possible the investigator may need this information.
Conclusion
If these steps are followed successfully, and you manage to hire a quality Private Investigator, the chances of solving the missing person are highly likely. Private Investigators, and law enforcement cannot always guarantee the finding of your loved ones, but we do our best with what we have.