November 10, 2025 | Incident and Crime Statistics , Missing Person
Request Number: FOI/16009
Category: Incident and Crime Statistics - Missing Person
Subject: Missing Person Statistics
Request and Answer:
Your request for information has now been considered. In respect of Section 1(1)(a) of the Act we can confirm that the Police Service of Northern Ireland does hold information to which your request relates. The decision has been taken to disclose the following.
Question 1
The total number of missing persons recorded in Northern Ireland over the past 10 years (or another recent timeframe you can provide)
Question 2
Of those cases, how many have been resolved (person found alive or deceased) and how many remain unresolved / open.
Question 3
If available, a breakdown by gender (men, women) and age group (children under 18, adults).
Answers 1 - 3
Please see below table:
| Financial Year | TOTAL No of Missing Reports | Number of Persons Located (during the FY) | Number of cases remaining open/unresolved (as of Oct 25) | No of missing Males | No of missing Females | No of missing Adult | No of missing Children |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015-2016 | 12189 | 12187 | 2 | 6898 | 5241 | 6660 | 5529 |
| 2016-2017 | 12821 | 12818 | 3 | 7137 | 5367 | 5636 | 7185 |
| 2017-2018 | 11,999 | 11,999 | 0 | 7190 | 4580 | 5574 | 6425 |
| 2018-2019 | 10,761 | 10,758 | 3 | 6426 | 4327 | 5501 | 5260 |
| 2019-2020 | 11,326 | 11,326 | 0 | 6506 | 4754 | 5723 | 5598 |
| 2020-2021 | 8912 | 8912 | 0 | 4967 | 3925 | 4200 | 4712 |
| 2021-2022 | 10263 | 10263 | 0 | 5149 | 5106 | 4519 | 5759 |
| 2022-2023 | 9571 | 9567 | 4 | 4979 | 4500 | 4370 | 5211 |
| 2023-2024 | 7061 | 7055 | 6 | 3808 | 3203 | 3532 | 3529 |
| 2024-2025 | 4871 | 4870 | 1 | 2694 | 2164 | 2320 | 2567 |
| TOTAL | 99,774 | 99,755 | 19 | 55,754 | 43,167 | 48,035 | 51,775 |
Question 4
Any available statistics on unsolved homicide or suspicious death cases over the same period.
Answer 4
24 Homicide Investigations remain unsolved over this time period.