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
Steven Thell Koecher
Koecher, date, approximate 2009
Date Missing 12/12/2009
Missing From
St. George, Utah
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Male
Race
White
Date of Birth 11/01/1979 (42)
Age 30 years old
Height and Weight 5'10 - 5'11, 180 pounds
Clothing/Jewelry Description A hooded sweatshirt, a white dress shirt, blue jeans or Dockers pants, and white sneakers.
Associated Vehicle(s) White 2003 Chevrolet Cavalier (accounted for)
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian male. Blond hair, blue eyes. Koecher has a surgical scar behind each ear and a series of birthmarks on his abdomen forming a shape similar to a Nike swoosh.
Details of Disappearance Koecher was last seen leaving his residence in St. George, Utah on December 12, 2009. The following day, he spoke to two friends on his cellular phone and said he was in Las Vegas, Nevada. He offered to turn around to cover a church meeting for one of his friends, but his friend said not to bother. He has never been heard from again.
On December 14, Koecher's white 2003 Chevrolet Cavalier was found abandoned in a cul-de-sac in the 2600 block of Savannah Springs Avenue in an upscale residential neighborhood of Henderson, Nevada.
A video surveillance camera in the area showed him parking the car and leaving it there on December 13. He walked down the sidewalk, crossed the street and walked out of the frame. He was alone and didn't appear to be disoriented; it appeared as if he had a destination in mind and had parked in that location for a reason.
Koecher's shaving kit, coats, pillows and blankets were inside the vehicle, as well as Christmas gifts he'd purchased a few days before, but his cellular phone, wallet and driver's license were missing. His laptop computer and cellular phone charger were left behind at home. His car had half a tank of gas when he left it.
Almost five hours after Koecher left his car, his cellular phone signal was picked up at a tower several miles away near Arroyo Grande Boulevard and American Pacific Drive. Two hours following that, the signal was picked up in a subdivision near Sunset Drive and Stephanie Street.
Early the next morning, someone checked Koecher's voice mail and the signal was picked up at U.S. 95 and Russell Road. The phone stayed at that location for two days before the signal was lost.
It's unclear why Koecher traveled to Nevada. He is originally from Amarillo, Texas and graduated from Amarillo High School in 1998, and went on to graduate from the University of Utah.
Koecher is a devout Mormon. He did not drink alcohol or use drugs, as per his religious beliefs.
There was speculation that Koecher's disappearance was connected to the December 2009 disappearance of Susan Powell, who was last seen in West Valley City, Utah on December 7. Because Koecher was about the same age as Powell, and disappeared from the same state at approximately the same time, investigators looked into the possibility that their disappearances were linked.
Powell's husband actually suggested they had run away together, possibly to Brazil, where Koecher had been before on a mission trip. Authorities could find no connection between the disappearances and no evidence that the two of them knew each other, however.
Koecher's parents stated there is no indication that he committed suicide or planned to walk out of his life, and authorities can't find any evidence of foul play either. He was having financial problems at the time of his disappearance due to his unemployment, but his loved ones don't know what could have caused him to vanish. His father died in February 2011, suddenly but apparently of natural causes.
Both Utah and Nevada police are investigating Koecher's disappearance, which remains unsolved.
Investigating Agency
St. George Police Department
435-627-4319
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department
702-229-2907
Other
NamUs
Utah Department of Public Safety
Project Jason
KCSG Television
Connect Amarillo
ABC 4
KSL 5
The Examiner
The Salt Lake Tribune
8 News Now
Investigation Discovery: Disappeared
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
