Issue 57

The first issue of 2024 features the top 5 technological tools our experts believe should be on your radar. We also introduce you to Dr. Noelle Hunter, whose daughter, Muna, was abducted by her father to West Africa—a move that launched Dr. Hunter into international parental child abduction (IPCA) advocacy work (that thankfully helped get Muna returned). We share the story of a toddler’s abduction in Mexico that unfolded during a conference on missing children—with U.S. government and AMBER Alert Training & Technical Assistance leaders present to experience the rescue of “Baby Angela” in real-time. And we share the latest AMBER Alert-related news from across the nation, Indian Country, and the globe.

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Features

Cover Story: New Year, New Tech

As 2024 unfolds, an array of innovative technology awaits use by law enforcement. Our experts share the tools they believe [..]

Front Lines: It Takes a Village

After her parents were murdered, [..]

Faces: Alabama Mother is Champion for Change

After years of advocacy—and fighting [..]

Courses of Action: At Your Service

Download this handy reference sheet here. Trusted, timely & actionable information is at your fingertips: Simply focus your smartphone camera on these QR codes to access the latest training & networking opportunities for child protection professionals.

Indian Country Spotlight: Strength in Numbers

Dozens of AATTAP/AIIC Technology Toolkits are now in the hands of Minnesota and Wisconsin Tribes.

Sheriff’s Office K-9 Unit nabs first in manhunt trials

The Santa Rosa County, Florida, Sheriff’s Office K-9 Bloodhounds Unit and K-9 “Zinc” took top honors this past September at the 2023 Southeastern States Manhunt Trials, Single Leash Division. The field trials, which are hosted by the Escambia County Road Prison, simulate conditions that law enforcement K-9 teams experience when searching for a suspect or lost child. The county’s K-9 Unit is comprised of 17 highly trained canines supervised by Sergeants Chrystal Bozard and Robert Lenzo.

59 missing children rescued during FBI sting

More than 200 sex trafficking victims, including 59 missing children, were rescued by the FBI during a coordinated two-week campaign last summer that involved federal, state, and local agencies across the country, working in partnership with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. “Operation Cross Country,” now in its 13th year, also led to the identification or arrest of 126 suspects of child sexual exploitation and human trafficking offenses; 68 suspects of trafficking were also identified and arrested.

Florida Missing Children’s Day brings healing

The 25th Florida Missing Children’s Day event honored citizens, law enforcement officers, and K-9 teams for their exemplary efforts investigating missing persons, rescuing missing children, and preventing abductions. The September 11 ceremony in Tallahassee included a moment of remembrance for all the children who vanish each year. One of them was 14-year-old Demiah Appling, reported missing from Dixie County in October 2022. Her body was found two months later in neighboring Gilchrist County. Her uncle, David Appling, told Tallahassee’s WCTV that the ceremony was a moment of healing: “The people here, they understand. And they know, they explained to us it is OK to be sad, it’s OK to cry and show your emotions and not be ashamed of it.”

NCMEC: How to spot fake missing child posters

The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) warns about a new clickbait scam: bogus missing child posters. Learn how to recognize a fake by looking for these red flags: The poster doesn’t come from NCMEC, an official law enforcement agency, or credible news source; it may contain misspellings, syntax errors, or improperly used words; and it doesn’t note how you can take appropriate action.

International Briefs

American Samoa and Guam delegates propose legislation to increase jail time for traffickers

United States congressional delegates High Chief Uifa’atali Aumua Amata Coleman Radewagen of American Samoa and James Moylan of the District of Guam are co-sponsors of a bill to raise mandatory minimum jail time from 15 to 25 years for convicted child traffickers. The bill, known as the Combating Human-Trafficking of Innocent Lives Daily (C.H.I.L.D.) Act of 2023, also requires uniform sentences for traffickers who exploit victims under the age of 18. The toughened law is expected to send a strong message to those who engage in child sex trafficking. “Human trafficking is one of the greatest crimes imaginable, yet it is a sad reality that we must defeat,” said Congresswoman Radewagen. “Thank you to Congressman Moylan for his leadership on this important issue as we fight for the lives and futures of vulnerable children.” Representatives Don Davis of North Carolina, Diana Harshbarger of Tennessee, and Don Bacon of Nebraska also co-sponsored the bill, which was introduced last September.

Brazilian government signs deal with Meta to track down missing children

Digital powerhouse Meta has joined forces with Brazil’s Ministry of Justice and Public Security to help locate missing children and adolescents up to age 18. In an agreement signed on the International Day of Missing Persons this past August, two of Meta’s platforms—Facebook and Instagram—have begun issuing emergency alerts for Brazil’s missing children. Emily Vacher, Meta’s Global Director of Responsibility and Safety, says the technology has been used in 30 countries since 1990 and resulted in locating more than 1,200 children. Meta hopes to expand the program to other platforms, including WhatsApp and Threads.

DNA test helps U.S. man, stolen at birth, reunite with mother in Chile after 42 years

General Augusto Pinochet’s 17-year reign of terror resulted in tens of thousands of Chileans killed, tortured, and imprisoned—and an estimated 20,000 newborns were stolen and put up for adoption abroad. Pinochet was deposed in 1990, but the thousands of families whose babies were illegally taken still feel the pain. To help them and their missing children find answers, the Chilean nonprofit group Nos Buscamos has partnered with online genealogy platform MyHeritage to provide free at-home DNA testing kits for Chilean adoptees and victims of child trafficking. The effort is paying off: One American man has been given his birthright back. In late summer 2023, Nos Buscamos helped Jimmy Lippert Thyden locate his biological mother in Chile after 42 years. Thyden’s DNA test matched him to a first cousin who connected him with his birth mother, Maria Angelica Gonzalez. Thyden soon traveled to Chile with his family to meet her. The NGO has orchestrated over 450 such reunions between adoptees and their birth families in the last decade.

AMBER Advocate Magazine