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The importance of investigation cannot be over-emphasised. It is an on-going process from the time of the initial report until the subject is located. It will focus and lend direction to the search and therefore tell us where to search.

Search and investigation go hand in hand. They are inseparable.

Who Should Be The Investigator?

Wherever possible a dedicated investigator should be appointed. This person will build up a rapport with the reporting person who will quite often be a relative and will therefore require and expect to be involved and receive the necessary support and service.

In most cases the police will receive the initial report and the investigation will commence at the same time. The initial call-taker will not generally be the appointed investigator.

Investigation is a skill and an art. The best will be trained and experienced persons. This suggests that such a person should be a police officer. They will possess the right skills not only to be an investigator but they will also have the ability to ask the right question in order to analyse all the information available. They will be able to come to an informed decision, in liaison with the search manager, as to what may have happened to the subject.

Too often a search has been misdirected due to a lack of basic investigation or a misinterpretation of the facts available. This has led to delays and wasted effort and is why, in the author’s opinion, that the investigator should be a police officer,

Of course, there may be witnesses who do not respond well to being interviewed by someone in authority or uniform. We must always be open to the idea of using another experienced non-police officer if necessary. Such a person may be a suitably experienced search volunteer, for example. Whoever this person is they will liaise very closely with the search manager.

Every search requires a profile of the subject. This will be built up by the continuing investigation and will enable us to apply the search databases effectively.

We have already discussed the importance of the investigation process. As in the case of all criminal enquiries, the case will not be solved without investigation. To find any criminal or evidence/clues there must always be an effective investigation.

In the case of a lost person investigation we must treat the search as a mystery:

Investigation must be Professional

All information must be interpreted correctly

Beware the mistake of assuming

Informed decision-making is acceptable

The next piece of information may point to a new direction – keep an open mind and be flexible, even if it may appear to contradict an earlier strategy.

If we lose focus, fail to analyse the information correctly or to be open to a change of direction due to the receipt of new information, then we may delay finding the subject or we may not find them at all.

Lost Person Questionnaire

The standard missing person form is of little use in a lost person search. Far more information is needed that will identify the points required to conduct a full and effective investigation.

The following pages contain the questions that will be included within the questionnaire and which will provide the information required.

The forms themselves may differ slightly or may be amended over time through experience and feedback. It can be seen, however, that although rather lengthy, they will enable the search manager to build a profile of the subject.

Unlike forms in use by other well-established search organisations these forms have been made more relevant for this Force area.

LOST PERSON QUESTIONNAIRE

The intention of the information required by the completion of this form is to obtain as much information as possible in order to assist in ‘predicting’ the behaviour of the ‘lost’ person.  Some of the information may not be relevant.  If in doubt, include it.

View Questionnaire Form

Investigation Checklist

The following is a list of information which is essential in the early stages. It will be obtained when working through the lost person questionnaire and will assist in the profiling of the subject and hence the direction of the search.

Consider the Criminal Act

The possibility that the lost person investigation and search is the subject of criminal act such as murder or kidnapping has already been discussed. Children are most vulnerable in such cases. Such a scenario cannot be discounted although the search manager will, through experience and analysis, be in the best position to discount this possibility.

Where a criminal act is considered a strong possibility there are specialised resources to deal with the situation, such as CID, scenes of crime officers and specialist police search teams. It is highly unlikely that volunteer search and rescue organisations will be utilised when a known criminal enquiry is being investigated. Such a decision would be left to the search manager and Senior Investigating Officer (SIO).

Remember, when the crime is confirmed or strongly suspected the search manager’s role will almost certainly cease. There will still be search tasks, of course, but these are likely to be passed to a POLSA and the SIO will take over the investigation.

Should a subject be found deceased or badly injured, or should any evidence/clues be located where a crime is a possibility searchers should consider the location to be a crime scene. Measures to protect the crime scene should be implemented and the attendance of the appropriate specialists should be requested.

Interviewing

Interviewing is a skill which is best left to an expert, such as a police officer.

“The goal of an interview is to painlessly obtain information from a participant or witness to a trying incident in order to devise an effective course of action”

Tim J Setnicka, Wilderness Search and Rescue

“When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth”

Arthur Conan Doyle

The purpose of the interview is to obtain information to save life or to find a subject. It is not an interrogation or evidence for a court case.

Several basic areas must be dealt with during the investigation to enable a full picture to be considered:

Reported Incident

When interviewing the reporting person or witness as much information as possible concerning the actual incident which led to the report itself must be obtained.

What Happened?

If known or ascertainable it must be discovered if the incident which led to the report was witnessed in any way. If so were there any cries for help, injuries sustained, confusion of the subject, last instructions given to/by the subject.

Where did it happen?

This is so important. For this, maps and photographs will be required which can be shown to the witness. What was the terrain like? Where was the subject last seen? What are the distances involved? What was the route being taken by the subject when last seen?

When did it happen?

When was the subject last seen? When were they due to return or call in? If the subject is injured when did the symptoms/injury first become known?

Who is involved?

Personal details, description, equipment, habits, experience etc. All will be required.

Why has it happened?

Is it due to the weather, illness, depression? Is it a crime? Has the subject got financial/family/relationship problems?

Environmental Conditions

The search manager will need to know the conditions the subject will face, as well as those the responders must work in. The search manager will need to conduct a health and safety risk assessment for the search resources. Although extremely unlikely, the search manager may, in extraordinary circumstances, be fully justified in delaying or suspending a search. Weather/environmental conditions may dictate the type of resources which can be used. As an example, police search teams would not possess either the training or equipment to allow them to conduct searches on open moorland in blizzard-type conditions. A fully equipped volunteer organisation such as the Dartmoor Rescue Group would probably be able to undertake such a search. Of course, they would have to conduct a risk assessment to ensure the proposed course of action was acceptable.

There are several factors which must be known in order to plan the right response:

Initial Planning Point (IPP)

The incident control point (ICP) has been discussed in chapter 4. The ICP can be the search base and this is the physical location where the operation is controlled from, which may be sited some way from the search area or PLS/LKP, for example, the nearby village hall.

The initial planning point is the place from which we plan the search and from where we can start to apply our statistical databases.

The Initial Planning Point (IPP) can be either the:

Place Last Seen (PLS)

Or

Last Known Position (LKP)

These points must be identified in the very early stages and ideally ascertained at the time of the initial report. The IPP will never change. There may be new or subsequent planning points as the search and investigation progresses. For example a new sighting will give the search manager a new PLS/LKP from which we will need to re-plot the statistical data. Likewise the discovery of a verified clue such as a discarded item of clothing will lead to the need to reconsider the planning point in respect of plotting statistics on the map.

In order to ensure knowledge of the terms involved it is worth going over these again:

PLS – Place (or point) Last Seen.

This is the point where the subject was actually last seen by a witness, such as a mother stating she last saw her missing son at the river by the forest.

LKP – Last Known Position.        

This is the last substantiated position that the lost person subject was known to be. This will be ascertained by clues or other evidence such as a track or discarded item of clothing or other personal possessions which can definitely be attributed to the lost person.

A number of LKP’s may be discovered. Of course, this statement is contradictory as only one LKP can actually be the real last known position. This could happen where several clues are located or sightings are reported which may appear to contradict one another. Where this is the case the search manager will have to consider the strength of all the available evidence in order to give a reliable and accurate direction to the search. If it is impossible in the circumstances to identify the actual LKP then the search manager will have to consider the need to work with more than one planning point. This will mean using far more resources or ‘diluting’ the search effort.

CLUE SEEKING/ORIENTATION

Part of the investigation process will inevitably lead to the need to evaluate and analyse clues and evidence.

A clue is a fact, information or other type of evidence that helps to solve a mystery or problem.

Types of clues

Physical            Footprints

                        Food wrappers

                        Clothing

                        Personal possessions

                        Tracking indications

People              Witnesses

                        Sightings

LOCATING CLUES

From the subject          A lost subject will generate clues. These will be of the physical type such as discarded items which can be attributed to the subject. It would be most unlikely if a subject were to leave no clues at all. It is simply necessary to find them.

From the searchers      Searchers will be trained in clue recognition and detection. They are the best qualified to recognise and act upon any discovery.

From the search area  If we have not identified the correct search area then no clues will be found.

If the subject was never in the search area there will never be any clues to find and all the search efforts will be wasted.

The discovery of all clues must be investigated and followed up. For this the search manager will need to be able to call upon his search resources. If possible a stand by team should be kept available in order to respond to such eventualities.

DISCLAIMER

This site, whilst created from the perspective of a police officer, is a personal work. It does not necessarily represent the views or policy of Devon and Cornwall Constabulary.

The contents of this site are written in good faith, however the author can accept no responsibility for any loss, harm or damage howsoever caused by the use of content from this site.

You may copy and re-distribute content from this site provided the above disclaimer clearly accompanies any copy. The content of this site is the copyright of Michael H Rose and any copies or distribution of the contents must be accompanied with the copyright details and acknowledgement of the author