Three minors in Kentucky have been reported missing, and according to CBS Pittsburgh, they lived within a three-mile radius.
Mark Fields, 15, was the first of the three to go missing. Fields was reported missing at 9:25 p.m. and was last seem five miles south of London on March 30, according to the Laurel County Sheriff’s Office. He was last seen at 6 p.m.
Posted by Laurel County Sheriff's Office on Saturday, March 30, 2019
About three hours later Lindsey Couch, 12, was reported missing and last seen eight miles south of London, according to the CBS affiliate report.
Less than half an hour later, the third minor, Dalton Robinson, 17, was reported missing 7 miles south of London.
Update 3-31-19 at 2:25 A.M.—-Dalton Robinson and Lindsey Couch may have runaway together–we are checking to see if there is a connection.
Posted by Laurel County Sheriff's Office on Sunday, March 31, 2019
Update 3-31-19 at 2:25 A.M.—-Dalton Robinson and Lindsey Couch may have runaway together–we are checking to see if there is a connection.
Posted by Laurel County Sheriff's Office on Sunday, March 31, 2019
According to the sheriff’s office, Couch and Robinson may have run away together, but there seems to be no connection between them and Fields.
If you have any information about the whereabouts of these missing children, please call the Laurel County Sheriff’s Office at 606-864-6600 or 606-878-7000.
Other details about the case were not provided.
Missing Boy in Texas Found
A Texas boy who went missing for about a year and a half was found in Florida on March 30. Joshua Graham, 9, was found in Sanford, Florida, in a suspicious vehicle with his noncustodial parent, Kenneth Graham, reported ABC13 in Houston.
#Houston boy taken by father 2 years ago found safe in Florida, police say – https://t.co/zQe0s20NO6 #KPRC2 #joshuaGraham pic.twitter.com/TKu0drC2fG
— KPRC 2 Houston (@KPRC2) March 31, 2019
“Regardless of the circumstances, the feelings of loss and devastation are indescribable when any child is taken from a parent,” Sanford Police Chief Cecil Smith told WFTV.
The boy and Graham left in late 2017 without telling his wife about the decision. At that time, only the mother had custody of the boy.
Smith commended law enforcement for its efforts in tracking down the boy.
“The officers and investigators involved in this case are delighted to have played a significant role in reuniting this mother with her child after two long years. I am proud that the officers responding to this call quickly identified that something didn’t seem right, and those instincts led to this happy conclusion,” the Sandford Police Chief Cecil Smith said, WFTV reported.
#BREAKING: A Texas boy missing since 2017 was found early Saturday morning in Sanford, according to police.
Posted by WFTV Channel 9 on Saturday, March 30, 2019
Sanford Police stated that Graham isn’t in custody, and he’s not facing criminal charges.
Missing Children in the United States
There were 464,324 missing children reported in the FBI’s National Crime Information Center (NCIC) in 2017, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
Under federal law, when a child is reported missing to law enforcement authorities, they must be entered into the database. In 2016, there were 465,676 entries.
Hangin’ with the man, @MissingKids co-founder, @john_walsh
I have the utmost respect for John, what he’s been through losing a child and how he turned that pain into a life’s mission to protect our nation’s children. #TeamInPursuit ???? pic.twitter.com/QJC47zojcT
— Mike Hill (@mikeyeddie) March 28, 2019
“This number represents reports of missing children. That means if a child runs away multiple times in a year, each instance would be entered into NCIC separately and counted in the yearly total. Likewise, if an entry is withdrawn and amended or updated that would also be reflected in the total,” the center said.
In 2017, the center said it had assisted officers and families with more than 27,000 missing children. In those cases, 91 percent were endangered runaways and 5 percent family abductions.
Nancy McBride, the executive director of Florida Outreach at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, said most of the runaways involve technology.
“[Technology] has great benefits and some potential risks,” McBride told USA Today in 2017. “It’s important to stay plugged into their lives.” Tech is utilized by online predators, McBride said, who exploit gaps when the child’s relationship with their parents is not the best.
About one in seven children reported missing to the center in 2017 were likely to be victims of child sex trafficking, the center said.
Jack Phillips contributed to this article.
