Attorney General Releases 2023 Ohio Missing Children Report

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Saturday, May 25 is National Missing Children's Day, and in honor of the day, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost released the 2023 Missing Children Clearinghouse Report from Ohio.

This report shows that a total of 22,374 people went missing in 2023, including 17,405 children. The total number of missing people increased by 1,757 from the previous year, and in 2023, 1,950 more children went missing than in 2022.

However, the press release indicates that 98% of missing children have been found. It also notes that, according to open source data, five missing children have been found dead.

“Local law enforcement is the first line of defense when a child goes missing, and Ohio's sheriff's offices and police departments do a fantastic job reuniting missing children with their families,” Yost said. “Even though we celebrate a 98% reunification rate, one missing child is one child too many – BCI stands ready to help. »

While the details of the cases are not always clear, the release provided some highlights, including that 9,469 cases involved running away from home. This goes for children who leave home and leave overnight.

There were also 35 cases of “non-custodial parent abduction, in which a parent, other family member, or other person acting on behalf of a parent keeps or hides a child, depriving another person of his right to custody or visitation.

Finally, 15 cases concerned child abductions by a stranger.

In total, 13 AMBER Alerts were sent regarding 17 children, the release said. Among them, 16 were found safe and sound. One is always missing. They also issued 10 endangered missing children alerts for 12 children, all of whom were found safe.