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
John Melvin Wipert
Wipert, date, approximate 2009
Date Missing 06/01/2009
Missing From
Northway, Alaska
Missing Classification Lost/Injured Missing
Sex Male
Race
White
Date of Birth 05/13/1949 (73)
Age 60 years old
Height and Weight 5'8, 190 pounds
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian male. Gray hair, blue eyes.
Details of Disappearance Wipert was last heard from sometime in mid-June 2009. He was working as a caretaker at the Ptarmigan Lake Lodge in the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve near Northway, Alaska; his duties included protecting the property from marauding bears. He hasn't been heard from since.
The lodge is situated only a few miles from the Canadian border. Wipert had been hired by the lodge's owner, Urban Rahoi, in May. Rahoi planned to buy him a plane ticket to the lower 48 states in August.
Wippert's absence was discovered when Rahoi dropped by with groceries in the first week of July and found the property deserted. One door had been taken off its hinges and another had its hinges cut in half. The freezer was fully defrosted and there was bacon in the sink and rotting food on the counter.
Two horses stabled at the lodge, a bay gelding and a black gelding, disappeared along with Wipert. Both are branded with a star and half-circle. He left a third horse in the corral and nine more in the stables. The horse in the corral was starving and dehydrated when Rahoi found it.
Wipert left a note saying, "Gone to check out the cabin. Back tomorrow night." However, there is no cabin within a day's ride of the lodge.
It's possible that Wippert tried to travel on horseback to Beaver Creek, 35 miles to the north. He had told Rahoi he wanted to go to Canada along the White River, and Rahoi recommended the Beaver Creek route instead. He left maps of the United States and Canada spread out in the lodge, and the Beaver Creek route was marked.
Wipert is unfamiliar with the area, and he left his driver's license and clothing behind. An extensive search of the area turned up no indication of his whereabouts. Foul play is not suspected in his , but it remains unsolved.
Investigating Agency
Alaska State Troopers
Tok Station
907-833-5111
Fairbanks Station
800-811-0911
Other
Alaska Department of Public Safety
The Anchorage Daily News
The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The White Horse Star
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
