Police carry out 22,000 missing person investigations in a year

L Force stresses it cannot solve issue alone in call for multi-agency approach

0 Police investigating the disappearance of Margaret Fleming, inset, hand out leaflets to the public appealing for information to help the case. Police Scotland has warned more needs to be done to safeguard vulnerable children and adults after newly released figures revealed it carries out nearly 60 investigations into missing people every day.

Out of 21,817 cases in the last year, the force said more than half involved individuals who had gone missing multiple times, with one person the focus of more than 170 separate investigations.

The force stressed it alone cannot prevent people from going missing, and urged its partners and communities to help address the issue.

A leading missing person’s charity said return interviews for individuals, which can identify underlying issues and prevent future missing episodes, was key to curb- ing the problem, but pointed that they are not a statutory requirement in Scotland, unlike in England and Wales.

The statistics were outlined yesterday at the International Conference on Missing Children and Adults , held in Dundee’s Abertay University.

Assistant Chief Constable Andy Cowie said: “What our data tells us is that we need to do more, working with partners, to understand why people go missing, to prevent people going missing and to protect the most vulnerable people in our communities.”

In May, the Scottish Government published its National Missing Persons Framework, a strategy designed to better prevent, protect, and respond to people who go missing. It proposes preventative steps, including “consistent” return interview procedures.

Susannah Drury, director of services and advocacy at the Missing People charity, said: “Return home interviews and follow on support are an opportunity to find out why people left, what happened while they were away, and what help they need to stop it happening again.

“It’s absolutely vital to make that happen, as it can identify any number of issues – health or financial problems, or exploitation in the case of children.”

Annabelle Ewing, minister for community safety, said the new framework was a “major step forward” in protecting vulnerable people, and would help ensure “a consistent and coherent response is in place.”

Over 500 people are classed as long-term missing in Scotland. They include Margaret Fleming, a vulnerable woman from Inverclyde. She was reported missing last year, although the last independent sighting of her was in 1999.