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
Madeline Teresa Ponds
Madeline, date, approximate 1986; Age-progression to age 44 (date, approximate 2013)
Date Missing 11/20/1986
Missing From
Columbus, Mississippi
Missing Classification Non-Family Abduction
Sex Female
Race
White
Date of Birth 03/11/1969 (53)
Age 17 years old
Height and Weight 5'1, 105 pounds
Clothing/Jewelry Description A bright orange and blue sweater, straight-legged blue jeans and white high-top sneakers.
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Blonde/red hair, green eyes. Madeline's ears are pierced and she has a pencil lead mark at the base of her neck. Her nickname is Midge.
Details of Disappearance Madeline was last seen working alone at her job at PJ's One-Stop, a convenience store on southbound Highway 82 in Columbus, Mississippi on November 20, 1986. Her mother brought her some dinner, then returned to their residence. Less than five minutes later, a customer discovered that the store was unattended and contacted authorities.
Approximately $600 was missing from the cash register. Madeline's personal belongings were still inside the business and her car was parked in the store's lot with her purse, wallet, keys and hairbrush. She has never been heard from again.
Madeline's mother says it is uncharacteristic of her to leave without taking her hairbrush or telling someone where she was going. She believes Madeline was abducted and says her daughter would not have gone without a fight.
Madeline was a high school senior at the time of her disappearance and planned to join the armed forces after graduation. She lived in Alabama with her family.
Both Mississippi and Alabama police are investigating her , which remains unsolved.
Investigating Agency
Lowndes County, Mississippi Sheriff's Office
601-328-6788
Pickens County, Alabama Sheriff's Office
205-367-2000
Other
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
Child Protection Education of America
NewsLibrary
Unsolved in the News
The Columbus Dispatch
The Clarion-Ledger
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
