Head of the Criminal Investigation Unit of the PJ Miguel Gonçalves told Lusa that the available statistics reflect national communications made directly to the Judiciary Police or that were disseminated by other criminal police forces (PSP and GNR) and stresses that the registration of a missing person is different from the opening of an inquiry, which only occurs if there is "a suspicion of a situation of criminal origin".

"As a rule, the vast majority of situations we have are just situations in which a missing person report is made and, as a rule, children (up to 18 years old) are located within a short period of time", said Miguel Gonçalves.

"To my knowledge, we have no specific situation in 2023 of a child who has not been effectively located and who has then given rise to an inquiry", he added.

According to the figures, of the 1,010 children who went missing in 2023, 179 were under 14 years old, while the remaining 831 were between 14 and 17 years old, although the number may be somewhat inflated for different reasons.

"There are situations of duplication, because there are many institutionalised children who have several disappearances throughout the year", said the chief inspector, also noting that among those under 14 years old it is not always a disappearance of an institutionalised child, but rather a late arrival at the institution, stating that "they do not comply with the rules and, if they do not arrive, a missing person report is automatically made by the institution".

Regarding previous years, Miguel Gonçalves highlighted that in 2022 there were a total of 1,102 missing children reports, of which 178 were up to 14 years old and 924 in the age group between 14 and 17.

In 2021, the lowest number of missing children and young people in the last three years was recorded, with a total of 976 (129 up to 14 years old and 847 between 14 and 17 years old), "most likely still under the influence of the pandemic" of covid-19, stressed the chief inspector.

For the person in charge of the PJ, the Portuguese reality "is not worrying" when compared to that of other countries, citing the examples of the United Kingdom or Spain, while emphasising that situations involving children under 14 years old tend to "be resolved in the shortest possible time", while in young people between 14 and 17 years old the situation can become "more complicated", due to greater autonomy.

"Normally, 15-16 years old is the age where there is the highest incidence of missing children. Then, we also have those who are already very close to reaching adulthood, who will be 18 in a few months", he adds.

The PJ announced on Tuesday that it had joined the campaign for the International Day of Missing Children, promoted by the European Centre for Missing Children in 16 countries and which has the motto "Check. Think. Communicate", providing a manual to parents and caregivers on what to do in the event of a child's disappearance. According to the note released by the PJ, around 300,000 children disappear in Europe every year.

Leia Também: 63-year-old man missing in the municipality of Viseu. Searches are underway (Portuguese version)