Bremen Police Record Surge in Missing Persons Cases – 4360 Cases in 2023
The number of missing persons in Bremen reached an all-time high of 4360 cases in 2023. Demographic change and runaway minors are considered the main causes.
Bremen Missing Persons Unit Reports Continued Rise in Case Numbers
The number of missing persons cases in Bremen has risen continuously in recent years. According to Google News DE – Crime (de), citing the Weser Kurier, 2023 saw a previous record high reached with 4360 reported cases. In the current year, 2995 cases have been registered so far.
The Missing Persons Unit of Bremen Police is responsible for these cases – a unit that is organisationally attached to the homicide squad. Police spokeswoman Franka Haedke justifies this attachment by the necessity to assess at an early stage whether a disappearance could conceal a homicide. "In missing persons cases in particular, it is of decisive importance to recognise early on whether a homicide might be involved," says Haedke. The investigative experience of the violent crimes division provides significant advantages in this regard.
Two Main Causes for the Increase
Bremen Police do not maintain detailed statistics on the development of case numbers. However, Haedke names two central reasons for the increase: demographic change with a growing number of elderly and dementia-affected persons who tend to go missing, as well as the rising number of children, adolescents and unaccompanied minors who abscond from care facilities.
Not all reported cases require extensive investigations. Many of those affected are only temporarily absent and return on their own after a short time, or are quickly found in the course of simple measures, as Haedke puts the figures into context.
Two Specialists, Broad Operational Scope
Currently, two specialists work in the Missing Persons Unit, who assess, examine and process every incoming case. For more complex investigations, additional officers from the department are brought in.
As soon as danger to life or limb can be assumed, police initiate a search. In Bremen, this is generally followed by an immediate radio alert. Additionally, Bremen Tram AG (BSAG) and taxi services are asked to look out for the missing person in their areas. Depending on the individual case, tracker dogs, divers or a public media appeal may also be deployed.
Haedke recalls as an example a woman missing since 1993, whose remains were suspected to lie at the bottom of Tietjensee near Schwanewede. In 2018, the lake was first searched with divers and was eventually even drained – without success. No trace of the woman has been found to this day.
Adults Have the Right to Disappear
When it comes to missing adults with no apparent danger situation, police face legal restrictions. Anyone in full possession of their mental and physical faculties has the right to choose their whereabouts freely and need not disclose this either to relatives or authorities. "Without danger to life or limb, it is not the task of police to conduct inquiries into whereabouts," Haedke emphasises.
This is different for minors: for persons under 18 years of age, danger to life or limb is generally assumed, which is why they are always searched for.
When a missing adult is found, they themselves decide whether relatives may be informed of their whereabouts. If the person is well, not a victim of a crime and has not committed a crime themselves, the case is considered closed by police.
Unsolved Cases Retained for Decades
Unsolved missing persons cases must be retained by police for at least 30 years. According to Haedke, such cases do not fall into oblivion at Bremen Police even after this period. They would be reassessed at set intervals and reopened if new findings emerge.
The number of long-term unsolved cases in Bremen is, according to police, manageable. For persons missing for ten to thirty years, the number is in the low double digits.
Case of Sybille Lars: Missing Without Trace for 20 Years
Among the unsolved cases is the disappearance of Sybille Lars from Bremen-Horn twenty years ago. The then 39-year-old is considered by police to be a murder victim. However, the investigations came to a standstill. Her son does not accept this stalemate and continues fighting for clarification.
Source: Google News DE — Crime (de)