Missing persons and kidnap situations

Police start looking for a missing person if that person’s life is believed to be in danger or if the missing person is thought to have had an accident or become the victim of a crime. The search is begun quickly if the missing person is a child, an elderly person or someone who is ill. The police may call on the services of a trained voluntary rescue service to help them in their search.

Sometimes the missing person is a child who has been kidnapped. The Ministry of Justice gives advice in situations where the kidnapping has taken place in Europe or North America; for other countries the Ministry for Foreign Affairs has responsibility for this. The parents of a kidnapped child need much legal help and psychological support. Sometimes the urgent help of the police or a social welfare authority is needed to prevent a possible kidnapping.