Locating A Missing Person

Michelle Wilson - September 9, 2019

Some of the biggest questions we get around here have to do with locating missing people. That may sound dramatic, and in some cases it can be. But most of the time this has to do with friends or loved ones you haven’t seen for years and have lost touch with (although we also get quite a few questions regarding locating those who have recently just vanished). We wanted to compile a “game plan” of sorts for you to follow to help you track down your missing loved one.

Recently Missing People

A friend or loved one has suddenly and unexpectedly vanished. You want to take action as fast as you can. Here’s what to do:

• CALL HOSPITALS & JAILS – I know… what a horrible thought. But this really is the basics. If you are truly worried about this person it’s worth checking into local jails and hospitals. *Bring a Photo with you*
• FRIENDS & FAM – We are all pretty connected these days via the internet and social media. So use that tool to reach out to everyone you know, and everyone the missing person knows. Maybe they just forgot to let you know to not expect them back for a few days. Check with friends and other family to see if maybe they had made last minute plans.
• SOCIAL – Also make sure to check all of the person’s social media accounts. When was the last time they posted an update? What were they doing? Have they checked in somewhere? A great tool to use for this would be CheckPeople’s background search. It gives you a full prospective of an individual’s entire social footprint. It allows you to identify new people and new activity in their lives.
• GET THE POLICE INVOLVED – No… you don’t have to wait 24 hours to contact the police. That is absolute nonsense, especially when we are talking about younger people. Go to them ASAP and bring lots of photos if you can.
• YOUR COMMUNITY – Let’s get papering! You want to make sure you make missing signs and post them in all high traffic areas around your neighborhood. Include photos and your contact information. We need to know who last saw the missing person and when. We need to retrace steps. Lots of neighborhoods have Facebook groups as well. Talk to people and see who is connected and ask them to post about the missing person as well.
• MISSING PERSON RESOURCES – Here are a few outfits specifically set up to help you find missing loved ones
• Polly Klass Foundation – The Polly Klass Foundation helps families of missing children. They provide counseling, they work with investigators and help advocate for and distribute missing posters for your missing loved one.
• Find The Missing – This is a large national database of missing people. You can upload details and photos.
• Black and Missing – Did you know that African-Americans go missing at a disproportionate rate? For the most part it goes vastly under reported by the news media. This foundation is set up to remedy that and help provide resources for families.

FINDING A MISSING PERSON WITH PUBLIC RECORDS

Alright so most of the people we might consider to be “missing” in our lives are likely not really “missing” but just… “misplaced” (for lack of a better term). Most of the time its people from our past we very much want to reconnect with.

Using CheckPeople makes it really easy to track someone down using public records. It’s really simple to use and within seconds you’ll have all kinds of answers that would have taken you months to track down on your own.

But where do you start? Here’s a few questions you’ll want to write down before doing your public records search:

• FULL NAME – You will want to include variations. If Jonathan used to go by Jon, you’ll want to include both in what you write down.
• BIRTHDAY – What is their date of birth? Do you know their exact age? Write these down for sure.
• LAST KNOWN LOCATION – Where did you last hear from them? Have they ever lived anywhere else?
• FAMILY – Do you know the names of their family members? Their parents? Their siblings? Try doing searches for these people as well as it may lead you to find the person you are looking for.

Once you have collected all the information you are ready to begin your Online Background Check.

HELPFUL SEARCH TIPS:

• If you have trouble finding the person you are looking for trying using the variations of their name (as well as their married or maiden names).
• If their name is pretty unique, you can try searching in all states instead of just a specific state.
• Try searching for a family member. Search results will include social media accounts. This will give you the ability to look through relative’s accounts to see if you can find the person you are looking for. You can also reach out directly to their family members for help.
• If you are related to the person and ever shared a home. You can try doing a background search on yourself. We include individuals who are related and/or are acquaintances. You may be able to locate them using this tool.