The Many Reasons Why People Go Missing
The Missing Persons Epidemic
Intrigued by the unsettling reality of people going missing, my fascination with this phenomenon began when my mother disappeared from my life during my childhood. I was told she had eloped with another man and started a new family, leaving me with unanswered questions and a void that has persisted to this day. A newspaper article and an investigation were undertaken at the time, to no avail. Unlike the childhood game of hide and seek — where the goal is to stay hidden and not be found—real-life disappearances leave behind a haunting absence that demands answers.
As I delved deeper into this subject, I discovered that each day, countless individuals around the world go missing, driven by a wide range of factors as diverse as the people themselves. These factors include personal choices, external pressures, involvement in cults, criminal activities, mental health issues, and even more speculative explanations such as alien abduction.
The impact of a loved one's disappearance can be overwhelmingly devastating for families. It brings with it an unsettling sense of uncertainty and fear. This article is dedicated to shedding light on the various reasons why people go missing and providing support to those who find themselves grappling with this distressing experience.
If you are a family member or a loved one dealing with the anguish of a missing person, I encourage you to seek assistance. Numerous organisations are ready to offer help, and you will find a wealth of information and resources at the end of this article. My aim is to explore these reasons for disappearances in the hope of offering insight and understanding to those in search of answers.
The Many Reasons Why People Go Missing
It's challenging to rank these situations in a definitive order of seriousness or importance, so I have chosen to list them alphabetically for clarity.
Accidental Disappearance
Accidents and natural disasters can swiftly lead to people going missing. For instance, a hiker may become disoriented in the wilderness, unable to find their way back, or an individual could be swept away by a flood or trapped in an earthquake's aftermath. These incidents are often unforeseeable and can happen to anyone. Therefore, it's crucial to be cautious when venturing into the great outdoors or residing in areas susceptible to natural disasters.
Abduction by Strangers
Abduction is one of the most frightening and heartbreaking reasons for people going missing. It involves the forceful removal of an individual against their will, often subjecting them to a world filled with fear, uncertainty, and danger. Abductions can stem from a range of sinister motives, making them a deeply disturbing aspect of the missing persons' enigma.
Abduction by Family Members
In this situation, children or teenagers are abducted by family who want to take them away from other family members to live a different lifestyle. One such case involved Alex Batty, a teenager who disappeared after going on holiday with his mother—but not his parental guardian—and grandfather in Spain on a supposed holiday. But instead of returning home, he was taken to France to live a different lifestyle in a spiritual community.
Addiction
Individuals grappling with addiction may vanish in pursuit of drugs and dangerous thrills, placing themselves in jeopardy of becoming entangled in criminal activities, experiencing violence, and enduring the physical and psychological toll of substance abuse. The accompanying feelings of shame and guilt often intensify their isolation and make it challenging to seek assistance.
In the UK, someone is reported missing every 90 seconds. Some go missing for hours, days, weeks, months, or even years. Sadly, others are never seen again.
Alien Abduction
Some people have disappeared under circumstances that have sparked speculation about the possibility of alien abduction. This remains a highly speculative and controversial explanation, though numerous accounts exist of individuals claiming to have been abducted by extraterrestrial beings. These accounts often entail descriptions of being taken aboard a spacecraft, undergoing medical examinations, or witnessing glimpses of the future.
Nevertheless, there is no scientific evidence supporting the existence of alien abduction, and the vast majority of missing persons cases are eventually resolved without considering this explanation. However, it's essential to keep an open mind, as the mysterious nature of some disappearances reminds us that the universe is so vast that it could be a possibility. In addition, many people (including myself) have reported UFO sightings, suggesting the possibility that people who have gone missing could be victims of alien abduction.
Avoiding Responsibilities
Financial hardships can also bring forth responsibilities, such as child support payments or other financial obligations. Some individuals choose to go missing to avoid these responsibilities, aspiring to start anew without the burden of financial commitments.
Criminal Activity
Some individuals may vanish while engaged in criminal activities, attempting to elude law enforcement. They might have fallen victim to foul play involving associates in criminal enterprises, or have gone into hiding to escape witness protection programs. Others may have committed crimes that they are deeply ashamed of, leading to feelings of isolation and a sense of unworthiness, shame and embarrassment. As a result, they may cut ties with their families and friends.
Cults or Extremist Groups
People may disappear when they become entangled with cults or extremist groups that cut them off from their previous lives. These groups employ manipulation and coercion to isolate their members, making it challenging to break free, whether by choice or not.
Members often fear retaliation or believe they cannot survive outside the group's confines. Some may even be physically restrained or coerced into dangerous activities, contributing to their disappearances. For example, the Heaven's Gate cult in California was notorious for isolating its members from the outside world and exerting control over their thoughts and behaviours. In 1997, 39 cult members tragically committed mass suicide in a ritual.
Domestic Abuse/Violence
Individuals may disappear as a means to escape their abuser. Their primary concern is often keeping their whereabouts hidden from everyone, including their partner, out of fear of being located and their tormentor knowing their whereabouts. This fear extends to not trusting anyone, including friends and family, to reveal their location, as they seek refuge and safety from the abusive situation.
Educational or Career Failures
Individuals who face significant setbacks in their education or career may experience shame and choose to disappear rather than confront the disappointment or judgement of others.
Eloping: Love's Secret Escape
Couples who elope often seek a fresh start together, away from the watchful eyes of family and friends. Some may already be married and want to break free from abusive relationships, even leaving their children behind as they abandon everything, including their former identities, to embark on a new life together.
Escaping Persecution
People who face persecution due to their political beliefs, religion, or sexual orientation/gender identity in less accepting environments might distance themselves from their families or communities to evade discrimination and prejudice based on these factors.
Faking Death
People feign their own deaths for various reasons, with the most common motive being "life insurance fraud." Typically, only a trusted individual, often a partner, is involved in such schemes. The goal is to create the illusion of a tragic demise, enabling the conspirators to claim insurance money or other financial benefits.
Others fake their death to escape debt, prosecution, or their previous lives. Some seek a fresh start, while others aim to avoid challenging circumstances. Others do it for attention, craving the drama and sympathy that comes with a supposed death hoax.
Financial Stress
Overwhelming financial stress, mounting debt, and the inability to meet financial obligations can drive individuals to consider disappearing as a way to escape their financial burdens. They may believe that by going missing, they can evade creditors or avoid facing the consequences of their financial troubles.
The reasons why people go missing are complex and varied. Some people go missing intentionally, while others do so unintentionally.
Homelessness
Individuals who experience homelessness, often forced to beg and endure the shame of living on the streets, may go missing. They carry the heavy burden of embarrassment and the fear of being perceived as failures. Sometimes they travel to other cities to avoid being seen or recognised. This desperate effort is to remain hidden from authorities and disconnect from loved ones, all in an attempt to escape the harsh reality of homelessness.
Human Rights Violations
Some individuals disappear as victims of human rights violations, often for political reasons. In such cases, they face abduction or detention by authorities due to their beliefs or activism challenging the established order.
Examples include journalists who expose government corruption, activists advocating for marginalised communities, or citizens peacefully protesting oppressive regimes. These individuals mysteriously vanish, their voices silenced because those in power seek to silence them.
Human Trafficking
Victims are forcibly taken or deceived into dire situations, such as sex trafficking or forced labour, where they cannot escape or contact loved ones for help. Some have been kidnapped. (See "Kidnapping" below.)
Kidnapping
The abduction of a person occurs for a variety of reasons. In some instances, they are killed if the ransom is not paid, and their bodies are never recovered. Other kidnapped victims may not even realise they've been kidnapped, falling victim to abduction.
For example, the highly controversial case of Madeleine McCann, who was abducted at age three, starkly illustrates the harsh reality of such crimes. Some kidnappings involve intentions ranging from harm to keeping and raising the victim. A child from India was kidnapped and forced to work in a brick factory. He was not allowed to go to school and was beaten if he tried to escape.
Medical Conditions
Conditions like dementia or amnesia can cause individuals to become disoriented and go missing without realising it. A woman with dementia wandered away from her home; thankfully she was found a few days later in a nearby park.
Mental Health Issues
People with mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, or schizophrenia may be more likely to go missing. This is because they may feel isolated or misunderstood, and they may not have the coping skills they need to deal with their problems.
Murder or Foul Play
Tragically, some individuals might meet a grim fate at the hands of others, whether by someone they know or a random stranger, for a variety of motives. For instance, take the case of Virginia McCulloch who murdered her parents and then lived with their bodies in the same home for four years. In other harrowing cases, remains could be concealed through dismemberment, burial, or disposal in bodies of water, leaving behind a painful mystery for loved ones and investigators to unravel.
In 2020 and 2021, a noticeable decrease in missing persons reports occurred, which can be attributed to the impact of COVID-19-related lockdowns and movement restrictions.
Natural Disasters
Natural disasters, such as hurricanes, sinkholes, earthquakes, floods, wildfires, and tornadoes, occur regularly, impacting lives and communities across the globe. These disasters often lead to injuries, fatalities, and individuals going missing due to flooding, collapsing structures, fires, and flying debris. This results in a
Online Relationships
Some people may go missing after forming online relationships that lead them to move or travel to meet individuals they've met on the internet, leaving their old life, including friends and family, behind.
Organ Theft Disappearances
Individuals sometimes go missing due to organ theft, a grim and illegal practice where people are abducted and their organs harvested for profit. A stark example is the situation involving Falun Gong practitioners in China, who have been targeted for forced organ harvesting. These disappearances are part of a disturbing and exploitative industry that values human lives solely for their body parts.
Personal Mistakes, Engaging in Wrongdoing
Sometimes individuals make a significant mistake or error in judgement that leads to shame, embarrassment, or fear of reprisals. They may leave to avoid the judgment of those around them. This includes cheating, stealing, criminal involvement, work mistakes, or hurting loved ones. These actions often bring shame, guilt, and fear of consequences, leading some to hide from those they've wronged.
Start a New Life
Some people go missing because they want to start a new life, away from their old problems and responsibilities. They may change their name, appearance, and even location to create a new identity for themselves for various reasons.
Substance Abuse
Individuals struggling with addiction may temporarily disappear while seeking drugs or engaging in risky behaviours, such as committing crimes and neglecting their appearance. They may have fallen out with their family and disappeared to avoid the consequences of their addiction.
Unintentional Disappearance
Sometimes people go missing unintentionally after moving home and changing their phone number. This can happen if they don't inform their friends and family about their move, lose their old phone number, or fail to update their social media profiles.
Voluntary Disappearance
Some people choose to go missing intentionally, often to escape problems, start afresh, or for excitement, or a combination of these reasons. Children and teenagers may run away due to family conflict, abuse, neglect, a desire for independence, or mental health issues stemming from difficult home environments or peer pressure.
War or Conflict
War or conflict can be deadly. People may be killed in combat or die indirectly from the effects of violence, such as famine or disease. People who live in areas affected by war or conflict may also go missing. They may be abducted, forced to flee their homes, or killed.
Windfall Vanishings
Some people who become millionaires or very wealthy may choose to distance themselves from their family, friends, and colleagues. There are a few reasons why this might happen. For example, there's the case of a U.S. lottery winner who won $30 million in the Florida lottery and then vanished, possibly adopting a new identity or, worse yet, falling victim to murder.
Be patient and persistent in the search for a missing person. Many people who go missing are eventually found.
Official Response Can Depend on Perception of Missing Person
The response of authorities to missing person cases can vary depending on several factors. Generally, individuals perceived as stable and responsible members of the community or young children often receive higher priority and more assistance from the police.
Conversely, those with a history of drug addiction, a propensity to run away, or a pattern of prolonged disappearances, may not always receive the same level of attention and resources. This discrepancy can be attributed to several reasons:
- Investigators may assume that these individuals are less likely to be in immediate danger or may have voluntarily left their current situation with plans to return eventually.
- Resource constraints may necessitate prioritisation, with the police focusing their efforts on cases involving missing children or vulnerable adults they consider more urgent.
- Biases and stereotypes may influence the police response, leading them to perceive individuals with a history of addiction or a tendency to run away as less deserving of assistance. These factors underscore the complexity of addressing missing person cases and highlight the need for a fair and equitable approach to ensure that everyone, regardless of their circumstances, receives the help and attention they require.
Author's Personal Story
As for my missing mother, I will never give up hope of finding her. I know that she is out there somewhere. If you are concerned that someone you know has gone missing, report it to the authorities as soon as possible. You do not always have to wait 24 hours to report someone missing. The police will be able to launch a search and investigation, and they may be able to help you find the person.
You can also help by sharing information about the missing person on social media and other platforms. However, be mindful of the fact this person may not want to be found.
There are many organisations that can help families and friends of missing persons. They provide support, resources, and advice. If you are looking for help, please contact them using the resources listed below.
Never give up hope. Even if the person has been missing for a long time, there is still a chance that they will be found. Continue to share information about the person and keep the search going.
Resources
If a missing person is in immediate danger, or a young child or vulnerable to harm, call 999 in the UK (911 in the United States).
- How to send a text to get help in an emergency
- What happens after you report a missing person to the UK police?
- Missing persons' statistics by country.
The United States may be the world's highest number of missing persons. Resources for families of missing American Indian and Alaska native adults
In this article, I have discussed the importance of reporting missing persons quickly and the resources available to families and friends of missing persons. I urge you to share this article on social media and help to raise awareness of this important issue. Together, we can make a difference.
The Mystery of My Missing Mother
If you know someone matching this description, please contact me. I would be so grateful for any help. She will be about 70+ years of age and possibly living in London.
© 2023 Tony Sky
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