‘Extraordinary Surge’ In Missing Children In Ohio This Year

An alarming trend is finally getting attention in Ohio as over 1,000 children have been reported missing so far this year. Though a majority of the 1,072 cases were resolved when the minors returned home safely, many are concerned with what is termed an “extraordinary surge.”

Cleveland highlights the increasing cause for worry. News 5 reported that just in September, over 45 children were reported missing in the Cleveland-Akron area.

That’s on top of the 35 reported missing in August. Newburgh Heights Police Chief John Majoy doubles as the president of Cleveland Missing, which is purposed to locate missing minors.

Majoy warned that some of the children who disappeared may have fallen into the clutches of human traffickers or gangs. He said that for reasons unknown, 2023 has seen a dramatic upswing in these cases.

The list of names is frightening. Keshaun Williams, 15, has not been seen in over 90 days as the frantic search continues. Cleveland Missing reported that Camryn Golias, 17, Teonnah Thompkis 17, Maurice Hamrick, 14, and Honesty Howell, 16, disappeared near the same time.

There are numerous other names on that list, and none have been seen for a week or more.

Majoy said it takes the community to look for these missing children, as there are not enough police officers to do what needs to be done. “The public is our greatest asset. We can’t do this without the public.” 

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said Monday that the number of missing kids is alarming. He added, however, that numbers may be higher in part because of errors in updating reports. 

This is a problem that plagued Cleveland in the past.

He acknowledged that some of the children listed as missing are repeat runaways. Yost said data in cases of runaways, abductions and trafficking incidents is not always entered into the state system correctly.

He said that despite encouragement from Ohio officials, they are at the mercy of local authorities who they don’t control to enter the correct data.

Yost said he is “fearful of all kinds of things that fall through the cracks, that includes missing children. I rely on the tenacity of a worried parent more than I do a harried bureaucrat whose job it is to put data into a computer.”