It was another beautiful day and Omiete who was busy with her customers at her flourishing restaurant suddenly realised that the woman who supplied her fresh vegetables daily would soon be around to pick up her payment for the previous day’s supply. She hurriedly called Okon (her teenage son} who was hard at his studies for his SSCE (Senior Secondary Certificate Examination) to hurry to the bank ATM which was close by and withdraw the sum of N20,000.00 (twenty thousand naira) cash for her use. Reluctantly, Okon left and Omiete returned to rendering service to her customers. It was not until about two hours later when the vegetable vendor arrived that Omiete realised that Okon had not yet returned. She asked all the staff if they had seen him and dialed his cellular phone. To her surprise, his number was switched off. This sent a wave of panic through her because she knew her son. He was not one associated with frivolity and had always acted responsibly. Something must be wrong she thought. “Where do I start from” she whispered to herself. His father had passed on when he was a toddler and Okon was all she lived for. Hmm, she headed for the bank and insisted on seeing the Manager although they were closed to customers. She made a report and was advised to report to the nearest police station. She rushed to the station only to be informed that nothing could be done until after 24 hours of his disappearance so she should come the next day. She was restless, could he have been involved in a hit-and-run accident? Did robbers follow him and dispossess him of the money? Was he kidnapped? The questions were endless and there was no respite. She rushed to her church and poured out her anguish to the parish priest who calmed her somewhat and prayed along with her. She was then advised to wait until the next day and the priest volunteered to accompany her to the police station.

Omiete hardly slept a wink all night as she kept vigil till morning and was busy counting the hours until it was 24 hours since Okon had left the restaurant. As if on cue, the parish priest picked her up in his car and they headed to the police station. She lodged her complaint, and the police accompanied her to the bank where the CCTV camera of the bank showed Okon as having collected money from the ATM. They however noticed that he was closely followed out of the bank premises by a young man whose face was caught on camera. The police also tracked the phone using the IMEI code and were able to trace its location to another town bordering the outskirts of the city. Omiete’s heart was pounding loudly as she insisted on accompanying the police to the suspected location, hoping to see her son but all her entreaties fell on deaf ears as the police insisted that it would be dangerous to do so. After about three days, Okon was brought home by the police although he needed to be treated for shock and malnourishment…but what was that compared with the loss of a child…worse still, an only child. There is a local proverb that interprets it as: “The death of a child is less traumatic than that of a missing child that is never found”. Omiete was grateful to God for the return of Okon and likened it to the joy that the father of the prodigal son in the bible, felt at his return.

Unfortunately, the case of missing persons, and in particular missing children, is on the increase globally. Parents are warned to teach their children safety, security consciousness and awareness and schools should assist in the education process as well. People also need to acquaint themselves with the steps required in cases of missing persons.  In Nigeria, these are:

Informing the police within 24 hours of the time the person became missing. For emphasis, I repeat WITHIN not after. In Nigeria, S.90 of the Police Act of 2020, states this clearly.

A report should also be made online through the Missing Platforms Platform. The platform partners with technical assistants and the ICRC (International Committee of the Red Cross) to provide trauma management services for both the family members and the reconciled missing persons.

Advertisements in all media platforms e.g., visual, audio, and social are also helpful.

It is also noteworthy that the IMEI numbers of phones can be used to track the location of phones, which may assist in tracking down hideouts. Most androids have apps that assist in finding the phone and this could help the police in their investigations.

Love

Havilah