The stories of Etan Patz, Adam Walsh, and many others have made child abduction a national issue. While the vast majority of missing children return home safely, many do not.
Statistics from the U.S. Department of Justice help shed light on the problem.
Missing children
- An estimated 797,500 children were reported missing each year.1
- More than than 2,000 children are reported missing every day, but thankfully the vast majority of them are recovered quickly.
Non-family abductions
- An estimated 58,200 children were taken in one year by someone outside the family2
- An estimated 115 children experienced a stereotypical kidnapping, the rarest type of abduction potentially posing great risk of serious harm.3
Family abductions
- An estimated 203,900 children were victims of family abduction, where the child was taken by a noncustodial parent.4
- 24 percent of these abductions lasted one week to less than one month.5
If your child is missing...
Call your local police department right away. Police are required by law to immediately take a missing child report and then promptly enter that report into the FBI’s National Crime Information Center. After you have contacted local authorities, contact NCMEC at 1.800.THE.LOST(1.800.843.5678) or online at www.missingkids.com.
Footnotes
1. Source: Andrea J. Sedlak, David Finkelhor, Heather Hammer, and Dana J. Schultz. “National Estimates of Missing Children: An Overview” in National Incidence Studies of Missing, Abducted, Runaway, and Thrownaway Children. Washington, DC: Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice, October 2002, page 5.
2. Source: David Finkelhor, Heather Hammer, and Andrea J. Sedlak. “Nonfamily Abducted Children: National Estimates and Characteristics” in National Incidence Studies of Missing, Abducted, Runaway, and Thrownaway Children. Washington, DC: Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice, October 2002, page 6.
3. Ibid.
4. Source: Heather Hammer, David Finkelhor, and Andrea J. Sedlak. “Children Abducted by Family Members: National Estimates and Characteristics” in National Incidence Studies of Missing, Abducted, Runaway, and Thrownaway Children. Washington, DC: Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice, October 2002, page 4.
5. Ibid., page 7.
