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
Joaquim Santos Prata
Prata, date, approximate 2015
Date Missing 10/03/2015
Missing From
New Bedford, Massachusetts
Missing Classification Lost/Injured Missing
Sex Male
Race
White
Date of Birth 01/11/1960 (62)
Age 55 years old
Height and Weight 6'2, 180 pounds
Clothing/Jewelry Description A gray shirt and black pants.
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian male. Brown hair, brown eyes. Prata's nickname is Jack. He had a mustache and a graying beard at the time of his disappearance.
Details of Disappearance Prata was last seen by his coworkers at a work site on Braley Road in Freetown, Massachusetts at 3:30 p.m. on October 3, 2015. At 6:45 p.m., he was sighted on video surveillance footage at the headquarters of his company, Fernandes Masonry in New Bedford, Massachusetts, driving away in his work vehicle.
He has never been heard from again. His work vehicle was later found at the Braley Road work site with his cellular phone, wallet, keys and a suicide note inside. The note said he did not want to be found.
At the time of his disappearance, Prata lived in the 300 block of Doric Avenue in Cranston, Rhode Island. His remains unsolved. Both Rhode Island and Massachusetts police are investigating.
Investigating Agency
Cranston, Rhode Island Police Department
401-942-2211
Massachusetts State Police
508-997-0711
Other
Bristol County Discrict Attorney's Office
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 Case Updates with Photos