National Missing Children’s Day 2018, Help Find Them (Learn More, Videos)

JACOB LEE CALDWELL, KEIOSHA MARIE FELIX, MYRA LEWIS, CRYSTAL ANN TYMICH

Children continue to face dangerous threats these days from online predators, human traffickers, kidnappers, and other criminals who want to harm them.

At the end of 2017, the Bureau’s National Crime Information Center (NCIC) Missing Persons File contained more than 32,000 records of youngsters under the age of 18.

But missing kids can be found, and those responsible for taking them can be brought to justice.

RELISHA TENAU RUDD, RONDREIZ PHILLIPS, TABITHA TUDERS, ASHA JAQUILLA DEGREE

(Being a parent is hard work. But being the parent of a missing child is unimaginable. Learn more about NCMEC and Canon USA, a 2017 ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security Awards Program Winner – You Make Us Proud. Courtesy of KGUN9 and YouTube. Posted on May 24, 2018)

Earlier this year, a man abducted a 4-year-old South Carolina girl from her mother.

The child, through law enforcement efforts and the assistance of alert citizens, was safely recovered and returned to her mother.

The man was ultimately arrested and federally charged with kidnapping, and he’s also facing charges in state court.

(Convicted felon, Thomas Lawton Evans Jr., 37, allegedly ‘kidnapped and raped a four-year-old girl after following her mother home at random, beating and tying her up and sexually assaulting her.’ Courtesy of WCBD NEWS 2 and YouTube. Posted on Mar 17, 2018)

In addition to the FBI’s efforts to publicize, investigate, and offer assistance to local and state partners when kids go missing, the FBI also has programs in place to arrest child predators and to recover missing and endangered children.

DIAMOND BRADLEY, RUSSELL JOHN MORT, ANTHONETTE CAYEDITO, MALEINA LUHK

These programs include:

• The Innocence Lost Initiative, The Innocent Images National Initiative
• The annual Operation Cross Country, Child Abduction Rapid Deployment Teams
• Victim Services Division, Child Exploitation Task Forces
• International Crimes Against Children Task Forces
• Plus a number of community outreach programs that help educate parents and children about safety measures they can follow.
• The FBI also partners with organizations like the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC).

(Every year, federal agents across the country run a massive sting operation called Operation Cross Country to get dangerous traffickers off the streets and save sexually abused minors. Hear from FBI Denver Special Agent in Charge Calvin Shivers and Victim Specialist Anne Darr describe the primary role of the FBI’s national multi-agency initiative—to recover children who are being trafficked. Courtesy of the FBI and YouTube. Posted on Oct 18, 2017)

All of this is an effort to help protect our nation’s most precious resource—our kids.

Please note: The children pictured here may have been located since this information was posted. Please check our Kidnappings & Missing Persons webpage for up-to-date information on them and on additional missing children and other persons.