Missing Person Photos
A missing person is a person who has disappeared and whose status as alive or dead cannot be confirmed as their location and condition are unknown. A person may go missing through a voluntary disappearance, or else due to an accident, crime, death in a location where they cannot be found (such as at sea), or many other reasons. In most parts of the world, a missing person will usually be found quickly. While criminal abductions are some of the most widely reported missing person cases, these account for only 2 to 5 percent of missing children in Europe.
By contrast, some missing person cases remain unresolved for many years. Laws related to these cases are often complex since, in many jurisdictions, relatives and third parties may not deal with a person's assets until their death is considered proven by law and a formal death certificate issued. The situation, uncertainties, and lack of closure or a funeral resulting when a person goes missing may be extremely painful with long-lasting effects on family and friends.
A number of organizations seek to connect, share best practices, and disseminate information and images of missing children to improve the effectiveness of missing children investigations, including the International Commission on Missing Persons, the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children (ICMEC), as well as national organizations, including the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in the US, Missing People in the UK, Child Focus in Belgium, and The Smile of the Child in Greece.
Resources for Missing Persons
According to current statistics, 4,000 people in the United States go missing every day.
Sometimes a child suddenly vanishes from the bus stop or the local park or even from their own yard or bedroom. Or a teenager doesn�t return home after a walk to the neighborhood grocery store or a bike ride or a party with friends.
Other times, an adult is mysteriously absent from their job or neighbors haven�t seen them for several days, and family and friends haven�t heard from them either.
Missing Person Photos
Amber Renee Barker
Amber, date, approximate 1997; Age-progression to age 21 (date, approximate 2008)
Date Missing 12/18/1997
Missing From
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Female
Race
White
Date of Birth 10/14/1987 (34)
Age 10 years old
Height and Weight 4'11 - 5'0, 70 - 80 pounds
Clothing/Jewelry Description A long-sleeved beige shirt with a brown collar, light blue or black jeans and No Excuses sneakers.
Associated Vehicle(s) Blue ten-speed bicycle (accounted for)
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Brown hair, brown eyes. Amber's ears are pierced. Her nickname is Amby.
Details of Disappearance Amber was last seen at approximately 6:00 p.m. on December 18, 1997 in her hometown of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Her mother spoke to her on the phone while she was at a friend's home and told her to come home. She left her friend's residence and was last seen riding her blue ten-speed bicycle in the 3000 block of northwest 45th Street at the time. Amber was on her way to her home home in the 3100 block of northwest 39th Street. She never arrived and has never been heard from again.
Amber's bicycle was discovered abandoned in Denniston Park in Oklahoma City on December 19, the day following her disappearance. The bike was located near northwest 27th Street and Drexel Boulevard, which is one mile from her home. Amber's sweater, shoes, one sock and a ring were found along Drexel Boulevard and northwest 12th Street on December 20. One of her shoes was a block away from the other one.
Investigators stated that blood, hair and fiber evidence was discovered near Amber's possessions. There were blue fibers on her sweater, as well as vomit mixed with possible ejaculate. There was a speck of blood on her shoe, but the blood spot was so small that authorities could not link it to any specific person. Authorities were able to form a partial DNA profile for an unknown man from the evidence on the sweater.
Daniel John Smith, Amber's sister's common-law husband, was previously convicted of attempted kidnapping in 1995. He admitted that he assaulted a woman in Oklahoma City while he was intoxicated and tried to steal her car keys. The woman says he tried to rape her. Smith pleaded guilty and was sentenced to a five-year deferred prison sentence and four months at a boot camp, where he earned excellent reviews.
The police had been summoned to another of Amber's sisters' homes in November 1997, approximately one month before the child disappeared. Her sister claimed that Smith hit her after she refused his sexual advances. He was given a citation by authorities but was not arrested. Smith was allegedly at Amber's residence when she called her mother to say she was returning home. He left the residence immediately afterwards and headed west, the same direction Amber was coming from.
Smith was questioned about Amber on the day after her disappearance, and authorities wanted to interview him further, but he discovered hanged from a tree in at Ray Trent Park in Del City, Oklahoma at 11:30 p.m. on December 22, 1997, four days after Amber was last seen. His death was ruled a suicide. Smith was not labeled as a suspect at the time; authorities simply said they wanted to question him regarding Amber's . However, both the police and Amber's family suspected he had knowledge of her disappearance.
Amber's disappearance remains unsolved. She was a fourth-grade student at James Monroe Elementary School at the time of her disappearance. Her loved ones stated she wasn't having any personal problems when she went missing; neither does she have a history as a runaway.
One of Amber's sisters died in 2013, and her mother died in 2014. Foul play is suspected due to the circumstances involved in her .
Investigating Agency
Oklahoma City Police Department
405-297-1290
Other
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
Child Protection Education of America
The Shawnee News-Star
Amber Renee Barker Missing
The Oklahoman
Tulsa World
NamUs
News 9
News on 6
Missing Person Photos
A missing person is a person who has disappeared and whose status as alive or dead cannot be confirmed as their location and condition are unknown. A person may go missing through a voluntary disappearance, or else due to an accident, crime, death in a location where they cannot be found (such as at sea), or many other reasons. In most parts of the world, a missing person will usually be found quickly. While criminal abductions are some of the most widely reported missing person cases, these account for only 2 to 5 percent of missing children in Europe.
By contrast, some missing person cases remain unresolved for many years. Laws related to these cases are often complex since, in many jurisdictions, relatives and third parties may not deal with a person's assets until their death is considered proven by law and a formal death certificate issued. The situation, uncertainties, and lack of closure or a funeral resulting when a person goes missing may be extremely painful with long-lasting effects on family and friends.
A number of organizations seek to connect, share best practices, and disseminate information and images of missing children to improve the effectiveness of missing children investigations, including the International Commission on Missing Persons, the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children (ICMEC), as well as national organizations, including the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in the US, Missing People in the UK, Child Focus in Belgium, and The Smile of the Child in Greece.
Resources for Missing Persons
According to current statistics, 4,000 people in the United States go missing every day.
Sometimes a child suddenly vanishes from the bus stop or the local park or even from their own yard or bedroom. Or a teenager doesn�t return home after a walk to the neighborhood grocery store or a bike ride or a party with friends.
Other times, an adult is mysteriously absent from their job or neighbors haven�t seen them for several days, and family and friends haven�t heard from them either.
Missing Person Photos
