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
Zachary Michael-Cole Bernhardt
Zachary, date, approximate 2000; Age-progression to age 29 (date, approximate 2020)
Date Missing 09/11/2000
Missing From
Clearwater, Florida
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Male
Race
White
Date of Birth 12/18/1991 (30)
Age 8 years old
Height and Weight 4'6, 60 pounds
Clothing/Jewelry Description Boxer shorts.
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian male. Blond hair, blue eyes. Zachary has scars under his chin, between on his eyes on the bridge of his nose, and on the right side of his upper lip. His nickname is Zach (it may be spelled "Zack"). Some agencies may refer to him as "Zachary Michael Bernhardt."
Details of Disappearance Zachary was living with his mother, Leah Hackett, in the 2600 block of Drew Street in Clearwater, Florida at the time of his disappearance. Hackett told authorities she had insomnia during the early morning hours of September 11, 2000. She stated that she left the apartment she shared with her son in Clearwater, Florida at approximately 2:00 a.m. and took a short swim and a walk around the area.
Zachary was asleep when she left. Hackett said that he had disappeared from their residence by the time she returned home. He has never been seen again. Accounts as to when Hackett discovered him missing differ; some state that she was out of their apartment only fifteen minutes, others that she was gone as long as two hours.
Early on in the investigation, authorities stated they thought Hackett knew more about her son's disappearance than she had disclosed. She frequently changed residences and was facing eviction from her apartment at the time of Zachary's disappearance. Hackett maintained her innocence in her son's . She now lives in Hawaii and has changed her last name to Hanson. Zachary's father was never involved in his life and has not been called a suspect in his disappearance.
An extensive search of the area produced no evidence as to Zachary's whereabouts. Authorities believe he disappeared under suspicious circumstances. Kevin Jalbert, who resides near Zachary's home, told an acquaintance that he was a child murderer and was prepared to find another victim in early 2001.
Authorities learned about Jalbert's comments and began tracking his movements. He attempted to solicit an undercover officer for assistance in a child abduction, rape and murder in September 2001. He was arrested shortly afterwards and later sentenced to forty years in prison.
Jalbert claims he has abducted and raped 1,000 children and killed five. His sister said he is a chronic liar and exaggerates to receive attention. He led the undercover police officer to Zachary's apartment building and said he had kidnapped a child from there, but he pointed out the wrong apartment and also described Zachary's clothing incorrectly. DNA samples from Jalbert also did not match available evidence in Zachary's . Jalbert denied having abducted the boy, but then he failed a polygraph about his possible involvement in the .
Investigators found child sexual abuse websites on Jalbert's home computer. It was determined that he visited a nearby landfill approximately two weeks after Zachary's disappearance. Jalbert had also been considered a suspect in a child abuse in Florida some time prior to 2000. He was never charged in connection with the unrelated . Authorities stated they've been unable to rule him out as a suspect in Zachary's disappearance.
In January 2002, a five-year-old boy was kidnapped from the same apartment complex Zachary disappeared from. The boy said his abductor lured him into a vehicle with the promise of ice cream, and drove around with him for ten hours. The boy was left alive in a trash bin in Bushnell, Florida and he was rescued by a passing motorist. He may have been sexually assaulted. Investigators looked into the possibility that the 2002 kidnapping and the Bernhardt were connected, but they found no evidence to support this. The 2002 kidnapping remains unsolved.
Zachary is described as an intelligent and cheerful child who excelled in school, where he was a third-grader. His disappearance remains unsolved.
Investigating Agency
Clearwater Police Department
727-562-4422
Other
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
Child Protection Education of America
America's Most Wanted
The Tampa Tribune
The Bradenton Herald
The Tallahassee Democrat
The St. Petersburg Times
Polk Online -- Your Guide to Polk County, Florida
Florida Department of Law Enforcement
MyFox Tampa Bay
Clearwater, Florida Patch
WFTS Tampa Bay
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
