Investigating disappeared individuals requires a complex operation that involves a large number of professionals. The key to success is adequate involvement of families.
The Search is an overall process combining sub-processes conducive 사람찾기흥신소 to determining the whereabouts and specific fate of missing persons (alive or dead). This is a fundamental obligation enshrined in international human rights and humanitarian law instruments.
Background Investigations
Whether an investigation is carried out within a humanitarian or criminal framework, the right to truth and justice for families of missing persons must be guaranteed. This includes access to information about the fate of a disappeared person, even without physically accessing their remains.
An experienced private investigator can conduct background investigations, using all possible tools to locate an individual: interviews with relatives; surveillance activities; public records searches; online research; and many other methods. This significantly enhances the chances of a case being resolved efficiently and successfully.
In cases of disappearances linked to a crime, journalists can also play an important role, particularly when corrupt officials are involved in the process. The work can be distressing and dangerous, especially when investigating mass graves or witnessing torture. This type of reporting requires a compassionate approach that involves listening to families and validating their feelings. It also requires the ability to understand and manage the level of stress that such cases generate, in particular among families and witnesses.
Interviewing People
In contexts of armed conflict, the investigation of disappearances often involves interviewing witnesses. These interviews are critical both to locating burial sites and positively identifying bodies that have been located. However, investigators in these contexts have rarely received formal training on conducting effective interviews.
Moreover, cultural differences can impact interview responses. For example, witnesses from communities that prioritize group cohesion or solidarity may be reluctant to share information with outsiders. This can be especially true if an investigator is from a different country.
Identifying suspects involved in organized crime (including drug trafficking, wildlife or natural resource theft, human rights abuses and other criminal rackets) is essential to solving cases of missing persons. Journalists can use Freedom of Information requests, data analysis, local sources and interviews with community members to identify potential suspects. They should also be aware that investigating disappearances can make them vulnerable, and should seek to avoid alerting corrupt authorities to their work.
Documenting Evidence
The preservation of evidence is one of the most important aspects of an investigation into disappearances and should be done with care to ensure it is not compromised. In the case of disappearances linked to human rights violations, this is crucial in order to establish whether or not there has been a breach of an individual’s right to life and personal integrity.
Depending on the circumstances, it may be necessary to preserve physical evidence such as clothing and personal belongings, body parts, blood samples etc. It is also important to document and catalogue all information gathered, including medical and family history, lifestyle habits, nicknames/political aliases, relationships, contact details etc.
A comprehensive database should be compiled for all individuals who are reported missing and this should be centralized to avoid duplicate cases. It should be updated regularly and accessible to all stakeholders involved in the investigation. This is known as the mapping of a disappeared person and it is an essential element in the identification process.
Identifying Suspects
Disappearances are often caused by criminal organizations smuggling drugs, resources and people for profit. Journalists play a role in deterring this type of criminal activity and in uncovering it when it occurs.
Investigations into disappearances are difficult and require the investigative officer to make judgment calls about which lines of inquiry to pursue. These decisions are critical to the effectiveness of the case and should be recorded as part of the investigation.
This may include door knocking and house to house enquiries near the missing person’s last known address, coordinating media coverage to publicize the missing persons description and appeal for information, conducting CCTV reviews and a review of social media accounts. In high risk cases, the IO should consider whether to contact the missing person’s mobile phone providers and financial institutions.
Investigators also need to be careful not to contaminate evidence by removing possible suspects from sight for the purposes of interviewing them. This can lead to miscarriages of justice.