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.



Missing Person Photos

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

Charles Southern Jr.
missing person case update January 2023 found new details posted
Southern, date, approximate 1987
Date Missing 12/01/1987
Missing From
Chicago, Illinois
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Male
Race
Black
Date of Birth 07/25/1948 (74)
Age 39 years old
Height and Weight 6'2, 180 pounds
Medical Conditions Southern was hospitalized for emotional problems prior to his 1987 disappearance.
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics African-American male. Black hair, brown eyes. Southern may have a full beard.
Details of Disappearance Southern was employed as an English professor at a community college in Chicago, Illinois in 1987. He was a member of Conscious Development of Body, Mind and Soul, a spiritual movement founded by Terri Hoffman.
Many consider the sect to be cult-like in its beliefs. Southern's status position rose in the organization during his membership and he began teaching classes and leading meditation groups. He also visited Hoffman's home in Dallas, Texas.
Former participants with the organization said that Hoffman often held meditation sessions with selected members. She apparently said that she was being attacked by "Black Lords" and requested that the members build a "psychic shield" around her for protection. The former members stated that many of the sessions' participants became fearful of the "Black Lords'" supposed attacks and developed emotional problems as a result.
Southern's family discovered that he was walking the streets of Chicago and speaking incoherently during 1987. Southern was hospitalized afterwards. His family visited him daily, as did two members of Conscious Development of Body, Mind and Soul. Southern resumed his normal routine after his release, but friends said that he seemed disenchanted with Hoffman. Nevertheless, he remained active in her organization.
Southern planned to travel to India for two weeks in December 1987 during his college's winter break. His mother said that she was concerned about him during this time and offered to visit with him prior to his scheduled departure. He declined and told his mother he was simply not feeling well. He has never been heard from again.
His family checked his residence after Southern's scheduled arrival time home passed without a word from him. They discovered that his passport was inside his house and no entry stamps from India were recorded.
A vial of a drug similar to the poison curare was found inside one of Southern's drawers. His winter dress hat and coat were folded inside-out and placed on a ceremonial stool; Southern's family later learned that this was a Nigerian tribal symbol for death.
His relatives also located two poorly-written notes which appeared to be Southern's wills. There was no sign of him inside the residence.
Hoffman told Southern's family she was not involved in his disappearance. She has never been charged in connection with Southern's . Almost a dozen of Hoffman's associates have died untimely deaths through the years, many by suicide. Hoffman was named as beneficiary in several of the s and collected thousands of dollars in cash, property and other assets. One family filed a wrongful death suit against her.
Authorities do not know if Southern chose to leave of his own accord or if other forces were at work. It is possible that he suffered another emotional breakdown that served as the catalyst to his disappearance, but nothing is certain. His remains unsolved.
Investigating Agency
Chicago Police Department
312-747-6222
Other
Unsolved Mysteries
The Watchman Expositor
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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.



Missing Person Photos

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