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

Joanna Kay Otto
missing person case update January 2023 found new details posted
missing person case update January 2023 found new details posted
missing person case update January 2023 found new details posted
missing person case update January 2023 found new details posted
missing person case update January 2023 found new details posted
Otto, date, approximate 1992; James Gibson, date, approximate 2010
Date Missing 11/20/1992
Missing From
Pensacola, Florida
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Female
Race
White
Date of Birth 08/03/1973 (49)
Age 19 years old
Height and Weight 5'7, 140 pounds
Clothing/Jewelry Description A white sweater, blue shorts with lace trim, a silver necklace and gold earrings.
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Brown hair, brown eyes. Otto's nickname is Jo.
Details of Disappearance Otto was last seen on November 20, 1992. She and her roommate went to a party, but her roommate became ill and had to go home.
Otto got a ride home later with a friend, 27-year-old James Earl Gibson. He later told police that he took two other people home and then dropped Otto off at her apartment at Maison de Ville Apartments in the 800 block of Royce Street. She never arrived home and has never been heard from again.
Otto had a history of dropping out of sight for days at a time, but she'd never been gone for longer than three days without calling home, and her family became worried after she failed to contact them over Thanksgiving. She was not reported missing until December 8. She was unemployed at the time of her disappearance, but looking for a job, and had gotten an interview for a position at the mall.
A photo of Gibson is posted with this summary. He was later sentenced to 35 years in prison for a 1994 kidnapping and rape. He had abducted an eighteen-year-old girl, an acquaintance of Otto's, sexually assaulted her and held her for nearly nine hours before releasing her. Authorities believe he could be a serial killer. He has not been charged in Otto's , however, and in July 2019 he was paroled from prison.
Otto was born in Dotham, Alabama and attended Woodham High School in Pensacola. She dropped out of high school in her junior year. Her mother described her as a trusting individual who loved going to parties. Foul play is suspected in her .
Investigating Agency
Escambia County Sheriff's Office
850-436-9620
Other
Florida Department of Law Enforcement
Escambia County Sheriff's Office
Hawkshaw Lagoon Memorial Park
The Florida Catholic
The Doe Network
Florida Department of Corrections
WEAR 3
The Pensacola News Journal

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