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It can be incredibly distressing when a loved one goes missing. Whether you're searching for someone who vanished recently at the border or during a natural catastrophe, or an individual who has been absent for some years, the primary step is to report their disappearance. If the missing person is not a Mexican resident, contact your country's embassy in Mexico for further guidance. Regardless, maintaining optimism and composure offers the best chance of their safe return home.
Procedures
Locating an Individual following a Calamity
Utilize Google Person Finder to search for the person. This platform provides a check-in service for areas affected by recent natural disasters. Access it here: https://google.org/personfinder/global/home.html
- Click on the menu icon in the top left corner, select the relevant natural disaster, and click the blue “I’m looking for someone” button. Then, enter the person’s name to initiate the search.
Utilize Facebook Safety Check. Search for “Facebook Safety Check” along with the location and type of disaster, such as “Facebook Safety Check Mexico earthquake,” using a search engine. Click on the relevant link, which should reference the specific disaster, like “The Earthquake in Mexico.” Choose the link on the left labeled “Friends in Area.” If the missing person is your Facebook friend, you can check if they’ve marked themselves as safe or if they haven’t responded yet.
- To inquire about the safety of a friend in the area, click the “Ask if Safe” button next to their name.
Refer to the Mexican government’s official website. During significant natural disasters in Mexico, the government website provides updated resources to aid in locating missing individuals. You can visit the government’s website at: https://www.gob.mx/
- For instance, following an earthquake, the government often releases a map showing collapsed buildings in the affected regions. Reviewing this map can help determine if the person was in an area hit by severe structural damage. Although it doesn’t confirm injuries, it provides insight into the level of destruction in their vicinity.
Reach out to missing persons through offline messaging apps. In some cases of natural disasters, individuals have successfully communicated with loved ones using offline messaging applications. Seek out simple messaging apps that operate akin to walkie-talkies, allowing communication with the push of a button. Both you and the missing person must have the app installed to connect, making it worthwhile to download and attempt communication.
Contact your embassy in Mexico. Inform them of your search for a person possibly affected by the natural disaster. They can facilitate communication with local authorities and provide assistance in locating the individual. As they are likely receiving numerous similar inquiries, maintain composure, politeness, and patience when contacting them. Speak clearly and inquire about the steps you can take to support the search.
- To contact the US Embassy, dial 011-52-55-5080-2000. From Mexico, dial 55-5080-2000.
- Reach the British Embassy at 020-7008-1500. From Mexico, dial 0052-55-1670-3200.
Get in touch with the Mexican embassy or consulate in your country. If the person you’re seeking is a Mexican citizen, contact the Mexican Embassy in your nation for assistance and to report a missing person. Maintain a calm demeanor and communicate clearly and politely, seeking guidance on how to aid the search.
- You can also contact the Mexican embassy’s Center for Information and Assistance for Mexicans (CIAM), which offers further details on the disaster and assists in locating missing individuals. In the US, call CIAM at 1-855-463-6395. In Mexico, dial 001-520-623-78.
Locating a Missing Individual at the Border
Immediately dial emergency services if the individual is believed to be lost in the desert. If you’ve had recent contact with the individual within the past three days and suspect they are lost in the desert, dial 911 without delay. Provide authorities with the individual’s last known whereabouts, their name, and physical description. Law enforcement or emergency responders may engage Border Patrol in the search.
- Despite concerns about involving American authorities, particularly if the individual crossed the border unlawfully, it may be essential for preserving the individual’s safety.
Reach out to non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Mexico and the US. As an alternative approach or supplement to contacting American authorities, consider reaching out to an NGO or charitable organization specializing in locating missing individuals along the border. These organizations offer assistance to families seeking relatives who have disappeared while attempting to cross the border. Online searches can help identify such services.
- You may also utilize Mexico’s migrant safety agency, Grupos Beta, which extends rescue and first aid services to migrants regardless of nationality or immigration status.
Contact the consulate or embassy of the individual’s home country. Inform them that you are searching for an individual who disappeared near the border. Provide details about the individual’s name, last known location, and physical appearance. Attempt to contact the consulate nearest to the location where the individual went missing. Consular authorities are likely to inform Border Patrol of the situation.
- If you suspect the individual has been detained at the border, you can also reach out to the consulate for information. They will disclose details about the detained individual only to immediate family members, such as spouses, parents, siblings, or children. Be prepared to furnish the individual’s full name and date of birth.
Get in touch with the Office of Refugee Resettlement if the individual is a refugee. This agency offers assistance to refugees from Central America, South America, Africa, and others seeking asylum in the United States. If you suspect the individual may be in their custody, contact them at 800-203-7001. Maintain composure and exhibit politeness and patience. Provide your name, contact number, and pertinent details about the individual, including their name and your relationship to them.
Reach out to US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). If there are concerns that the individual has been detained, contact ICE. Provide the person’s name, country of origin, and your relationship to them. Stay composed and remember your right to inquire about the person’s location, particularly if they are a family member. You can also utilize ICE’s online detainee locator by entering the individual’s full name and country of origin to check if they are in ICE custody.
- Call ICE at 1-888-351-4024.
- If the person is not found in the database, try alternative name spellings or rearrange their first and last names, in case of entry errors. Additionally, narrow the search by including the person’s middle name or date of birth.
- Please note that the locator only searches records for individuals aged 18 and above.
Reach out to forensic missing persons organizations if there are concerns of the individual being deceased. If conventional search methods yield no results, consider contacting organizations specializing in assisting families locate loved ones who may have perished on the border. These groups can collect DNA samples from relatives and search forensic databases for the missing person.
- Remember that engaging with these organizations does not necessarily indicate the individual’s demise. Maintain resilience and uphold hope.
- You may also directly contact state medical examiners.
Locating an Individual Missing for an Extended Period
Recollect the most recent information available about the individual. Compile all known details about the individual to aid in the search. Document their name, physical appearance, last known whereabouts, and date of last contact. Enhanced detail provision improves search efficacy. If possible, consult with acquaintances or family members of the individual.
Conduct an online search. Utilize major search engines to locate the individual. Initiate searches on platforms such as Google, Yahoo, and Bing. Enclose the individual’s name in quotation marks and incorporate general details about them.
- For instance, input “Thomas White”, “Thomas White Mexico”, or “Thomas White truck driver” to refine search results.
- Diverse search engines access distinct data sets and present findings differently, potentially yielding unique information across platforms.
Explore all social media platforms. Conduct a comprehensive search using the individual’s name across prominent platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+. Additionally, consider checking older platforms like MySpace. Even inactive or abandoned profiles could offer valuable insights for your quest.
Utilize missing person databases. Access global online databases that facilitate searches within Mexico and worldwide for missing individuals. If the person is listed in one of these databases, you may obtain information regarding their current residence and employment, facilitating communication.
Inform your nation’s embassy in Mexico. Regardless of the duration of the person’s absence, contacting your nation’s embassy or consulate in Mexico is advisable to notify them of your search efforts. The embassy can liaise with local authorities and provide any available information regarding the individual.
- Retrieve your embassy’s contact details from official government websites.
- Contact the US Embassy at 011-52-55-5080-2000. When calling from Mexico, dial 55-5080-2000.
- Contact the British Embassy at 020-7008-1500. When calling from Mexico, dial 0052-55-1670-3200.
Engage an international private investigator. If your search endeavors yield no outcomes, consider enlisting the services of a private investigator with international capabilities. Inquire about their experience investigating in Mexico and locating missing persons, and review their success rate on previous cases. While private investigators may incur substantial costs, their professional expertise could prove invaluable in achieving your objective.
Useful Insights
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If you’ll be traveling as a US citizen to Mexico or anywhere abroad, enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) beforehand. It’s a free service that will send you safety information and contact you or help family get in touch with you in case of emergency.
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Stay calm and keep a cool head at all times. Remind yourself that panicking won’t help you find your loved one any faster. Eat and rest when you need to and take good care of yourself.
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When dialing Mexican phone numbers from the US, dial 01152 first. When dialing from Mexico, dial 01 first.
