Among the most delicate missing person cases
are those that involve children. As with missing adults, most
missing children are found very quickly and safely return home.
In the very rare cases when something more
serious may have happened, there is a new scheme which aims to help
return to children to their homes as soon as possible.
Child Rescue Alert is
a new national initiative which aims to help children that have
been abducted by triggering an immediate public and media response.
It is based on the American system known as Amber Alert.
The target is to raise awareness via the media that a child
has been taken, so the public look out for the child, the abductor
or any vehicle used in the abduction and support the
investigation.
There are four key criteria, all of which must be met before a
Child Rescue Alert is issued:
- The child is under the age of 18
- There is reasonable belief that the child has been kidnapped or
abducted
- There is reasonable belief that the child is in imminent danger
of serious harm or death
- There is sufficient information available to enable the public
to assist the police in locating the child