The Delaware Division of Forensic Science, in partnership with New Castle County Police, Wilmington Police and the Delaware State Police, will host the state’s first Missing and Unidentified Persons Day on October 24.
This free event is for all families and friends affected by the disappearance of a loved one. Participants can meet with agencies working to locate missing people, identify unknown remains, learn about available resources, and connect with advocates and other families.
“For every family with a missing loved one, not knowing can bring its own kind of grief — and often no single agency can answer that question alone. By bringing together DNA testing, forensic records, and the people willing to sit with a family and take down every detail of a case gone cold, this event could help get families closer to the answers they’ve been waiting years to hear,” said John Evans, director of the Delaware Division of Forensic Science.
Families are encouraged to preregister, although a prior missing-person report is not required to attend. Participants will be able to share information to help advance cold cases, support new missing-person investigations, and ensure that agencies have complete pre-mortem information for missing loved ones. Eligible family members — including biological relatives such as parents, children, or siblings of the missing person — can also provide DNA samples to compare with unidentified skeletal remains recovered in Delaware.
Participants are encouraged to bring two biological relatives of the missing person for cheek-swab DNA collection, along with:
• Available X-rays, dental or medical records
• Identifying photographs
• Information about tattoos or scars
• Any applicable police reports or case numbers
Partner agencies, as well as the Delaware State Police Victim Services Section, the Delaware Department of Justice, and the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs), will be on hand to demonstrate and educate attendees about the tools, services, and forensic resources used to help locate missing people and identify unknown decedents.