COLUMBUS, OH — In recognition of National Missing Children’s Day, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost has officially released the 2025 Ohio Missing Children Clearinghouse Report. The annual report tracks data surrounding missing youth statewide, highlighting the vital cooperation between local law enforcement, federal databases, and community awareness initiatives.
The newest data shows a notable downward trend in overall missing person cases across the state, alongside an overwhelmingly successful recovery rate by Ohio law enforcement agencies.
“My heart weighs heavy with every child who goes missing,” Attorney General Yost said in a statement accompanying the release. “I am grateful to Ohio law enforcement for their diligent work to bring these children home.”
Key Data and Positive Trends
According to the report, a total of 19,930 people were reported missing in Ohio last year, representing a decrease of 1,412 individuals compared to the prior year.
Of those total cases, 15,367 involved missing children—which is 1,037 fewer than documented in 2024. Most encouragingly, the report notes that 97.8% of those missing children (15,024 individuals) were successfully and safely recovered by the end of the calendar year. Tragically, six of the reported missing children were found deceased.
A detailed breakdown of the 15,367 missing youth cases reveals:
- Runaways: 7,656 cases involved children who left their homes without parental permission.
- Noncustodial Parental Abductions: 22 cases were documented involving parental custody disputes.
- Stranger Abductions: Only two cases statewide involved a child taken by a stranger.
Emergency Alerts and Outcomes
The clearinghouse report also evaluated the effectiveness of Ohio’s emergency broadcast systems. Last year, the state issued four AMBER Alerts involving four separate children; all four were successfully recovered. Additionally, 18 Endangered Missing Child Alerts were issued for 18 children. Of those, 17 were safely found, while one was tragically found deceased.
The cumulative annual data is compiled through a joint effort between local police departments and the National Crime Information Center (NCIC), which is operated by the U.S. Department of Justice. When a child is reported missing or found, local law enforcement immediately logs the status into the NCIC network, which then transfers the yearly data to Ohio’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI).
BCI Hosts Annual Missing Persons Day Event
The release of the report coincides with Ohio’s Missing Persons Day, an annual awareness event hosted by BCI. Held on May 16 at Bowling Green State University, the event gathered families of missing loved ones, law enforcement officers, and community advocates to offer mutual support and keep active cases in the public eye.
BCI’s Missing Persons Unit—a specialized division within the bureau’s Criminal Intelligence Unit—remains a core resource for local police forces. The unit is responsible for coordinating the rapid issuance of both Endangered Missing Child Alerts and Endangered Missing Adult Alerts to mobilize the public during the critical initial hours of a disappearance.
