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
Gabriela Leticia Gonzalez
Gabriela, date, approximate 2002; Age-progression to age 25 (date, approximate 2012)
Date Missing 04/05/2002
Missing From
San Diego, California
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Female
Race
Hispanic
Date of Birth 09/22/1987 (35)
Age 14 years old
Height and Weight 5'1, 115 pounds
Clothing/Jewelry Description Levi's jeans and a gold chain and bracelet.
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics Hispanic female. Black hair, black eyes. Gabriela wears eyeglasses or contact lenses. She has the names "Gaby" and "Juan" tattooed on her back. Her nickname is Gaby and she may use the last name Fernandez.
Details of Disappearance Gabriela was last seen when her mother dropped her off at school on April 5, 2002. She did not attend her classes that day; she had not, in fact, gone to any since two days before her disappearance. She apparently went to visit her nineteen-year-old boyfriend, Juan Jose Vera, in Chula Vista, California instead.
That same day, Gabriela's mother went grocery shopping and when she returned, she found a note from Gabriela saying she loved her and was going out. She has never been heard from again.
Authorities initially believed Gabriela had run away and many agencies continue to classify her as such, but now police suspect foul play may have been involved in her disappearance.
In June 2005, police searched the Otay River Bottom at Otay Valley Regional Park because they thought her body might be buried there. Nothing was found, but investigators still believe her remains are in the vicinity.
Vera has gang affiliations and was allegedly abusive towards Gabriela, and he is considered a person of interest in her disappearance. He has a criminal record for, among other things, a series of bank robberies.
Gabriela was a freshman at Montgomery High School in 2002, and wasn't a good student, but she was close to her family. Her remains unsolved.
Investigating Agency
Chula Vista Police Department
619-691-5151
Other
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
California Attorney General's Office
NBC San Diego
KFMB Stations
The San Diego Union-Tribune
NBC San Diego
NamUs
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
