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For some people, the fear of abduction and becoming a missing person may persist for a lifetime. However, statistics in 2018 paint a picture of who is most at risk.” In general, younger people in certain demographic audiences face a greater chance of becoming a missing person.
In order to truly reduce your chances of becoming the victim of crime, it is always good to know the real statistics behind what scares you.
The number of people missing around the United States was much higher for people under the age of 21 than it was for those above 21.
In 2018, 211,906 males under 21 were reported as a missing person by the NCIC. The number was reduced to 98,611 males for ages 21 and over. 239,847 females under 21 were abducted, with 62,371 open cases for females over or at the age of 21.
White was the race with the highest total number of missing persons cases in 2018, with 362,988 total cases reported. Statista reports that these cases receive more media attention than minorities, but the total number of minority cases actually outpaces white missing persons cases.
In 2018, the number of Black missing persons reached 207,394. Asian missing persons cases numbered 12,994, with Indian missing persons standing at 9914. There were also 19,556 reported cases of an unknown race. Statista included Hispanics under the category of white.
The total number of cases of missing persons has fluctuated up and down since 1990. The late 90s was the time period with the most missing persons cases per year, with an average of around 950,000 annually.
Although in the late 201X, missing persons cases has been reduced to an average of around 620,000 per year, law enforcement has stated that the number was expected to go down more because of technology and improved communications infrastructure.
Statistics mean nothing if you are going through a personal case of a missing person. However, it is important to know the statistics in order to create a better picture of what may have happened. If you can backtrack steps, then you may be of more help to law enforcement as they work your case.
For those who are lucky enough to read this proactively, let these statistics serve as part of your research into protecting yourself and your loved ones. However, your research into the subject should never end.
