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 Case Updates with Photos

Ann Mineko Racz
missing 2023 updates

Ann, date, approximate 1991
Date Missing 04/22/1991
Missing From
Newhall, California
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Female
Race
Asian
Date of Birth 01/17/1949 (73)
Age 42 years old
Height and Weight 5'3, 113 pounds
Associated Vehicle(s) Plymouth station wagon (accounted for)
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics Asian female. Graying black hair, brown eyes. Ann has a scar extending from her navel to her pubic area, and her ears are pierced. She may use the last name Yoshiyama. Her surname is pronounced "Race." Some accounts spell her name "Anne" and some accounts give the date of her disappearance as March 22, 1991. Ann is of Japanese descent.
Details of Disappearance Ann was last seen in Newhall, California on April 22, 1991. She dropped off her three children at the residence of her husband, John Racz, near Valencia, California during the day. She planned to purchase hambugers at a nearby McDonald's afterwards, but she never returned to pick up her children and has not been heard from again.
Ann had separated from her husband four days before and filed for divorce. She was already seeing another man at the time. She moved into a condominium with their children.
After her disappearance, a cold pizza was found sitting on the kitchen table in her condominium. Investigators considered this to be odd, as Ann was considered a meticulous housekeeper who would not normally have left food out. She had gone on vacations before, and whenever she did so she would pre-address mailing labels so she could send postcards to her loved ones.
Her Plymouth station wagon was discovered abandoned near the airport in Van Nuys, California on April 26, 1991, more than one month after her disappearance. There was no sign of her at the scene.
John claimed that Ann departed on an extended trip and he gave her $25,000 to spend. He said he spoke to her on the telephone after she left. Authorities never believed she left her home voluntarily and suspected that she was the victim of foul play.
At the time of her disappearance, Ann was a well-known and popular community volunteer who worked at her children's school and at Newhall Presbyterian Church. None of her friends or family have heard from her since March 1991.
In October 2006, John was charged with murdering Ann. The grand jury issued the indictment after hearing testimony from nineteen witnesses, including the couple's children, who are now adults. Investigators dug up his backyard in September 2006, expecting to find Ann's body, but the search revealed no evidence.
Nevertheless, they felt the was strong enough to go to trial, since Ann was such a methodical woman who would be unlikely to vanish on her own. In addition, she had told friends she was afraid of John and thought he might kill her and hide her body so no one could find it.
John was convicted of first-degree murder in August 2007. He was sentenced to 25 years to life in state prison. At sentencing, John maintained his innocence in his wife's disappearance and stated she left him of her own accord. Ann's remains have never been located.
Some agencies may list April 24, 1991 as the date of Ann's disappearance.
Investigating Agency
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department
323-890-5500
Other
California Attorney General's Office
The Daily News of Los Angeles
The Orange County Register
The San Jose Mercury News
CBS 2
Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office
The Santa Clarita Valley Signal