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
DeAngelo Marquis McNeil
DeAngelo, date, approximate 1997; Age-progression to age 19 (date, approximate 2013)
Date Missing 04/17/1997
Missing From
Houston, Texas
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Male
Race
Hispanic
Date of Birth 06/01/1994 (28)
Age 2 years old
Height and Weight 3'0, 28 pounds
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics Hispanic male. Black hair, brown eyes.
Details of Disappearance DeAngelo was last seen at his family's residence in Houston, Texas on April 17, 1997. He has never been heard from again.
DeAngelo was taken into state custody at age seven months, when his mother, Patricia McNeil, was convicted of theft and sent to prison. After her release, she got permission to visit DeAngelo and his brother. In December 1996, the boys were permitted to live with her, though they remained officially wards of the court.
In March 1997, child welfare workers noticed a bruise on DeAngelo's face. Patricia told them he had accidentally fallen, but they suspected abuse and called DeAngelo's day care center for information.
In mid-April 1997, Patricia removed DeAngelo from the day care center. He has not been seen or heard from since. When asked about his whereabouts, she claimed he was with Manuel Ferreira, whom she said was his father.
Ferreira is a native of the Dominican Republic and resided in the Memorial area of Houston in 1997. Patricia said she did not have his address or telephone number. She gave police a pager number, which turned out to belong to someone unconnected to DeAngelo's .
Investigators eventually located Ferreira in the Dominican Republic; he had fled to there after jumping bond on a cocaine charge. He did not have the child with him, did not know where he was, and said he wasn't DeAngelo's father. That, and information gleaned in interviews with relatives, friends and acquaintances of Patricia and Ferreira led police to believe Patricia's story was false.
DeAngelo's brother told investigators that he had seen his mother beat DeAngelo with a belt. Patricia was later sentenced to 75 years in prison for abusing DeAngelo. Ferreira testified against her at the trial. She appealed her conviction but the appeal was denied.
Foul play is suspected in DeAngelo's . Police believe Patricia may have killed him. She has not been charged with any wrongdoing in connection with his disappearance, however, and the child's remains unsolved.
Some agencies classify DeAngelo's as a non-family abduction.
Investigating Agency
Harris County District Attorney's Office
713-599-5808
Other
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
Child Protection Education of America
Texas Department of Public Safety
NewsLibrary
North American Missing Persons Network
The Houston Chronicle
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
