About us

The National Missing Persons Bureau (LBVP) is part of the Dutch National Police (KLPD). The LBVP is located in Zoetermeer, near The Hague. One of our tasks is to support the Dutch regional police departments with their criminal investigations. In several ways the KLPD can also offer support to local law enforcement agencies to help them locate missing persons. The KLPD manages the national police information systems, such as the National Schengen Information System (NSIS), containing the names of people wanted by the police. The National Missing Persons System (VPS) holds the names and descriptive information of people who have been reported missing.

Specialists working with the LBVP also provide support in the search for missing persons, especially in cases in which foul play is suspected. A book has been published with information and suggestions to be used in missing person investigations. It is available, in Dutch only, to law enforcement agencies.

In 1999 a missing persons coordinator was appointed in each of the 25 regional police departments. The central coordinator with the LBVP is the point of contact for the regional coordinators, as well as law enforcement agencies from other countries.

Every year, around 16,000 people are reported missing to police by family or friends. The large majority of these people return within a fairly short period of time, but some do not. They have become the victim of an accident or a crime. Sometimes it remains unclear what happened to people who have gone missing.

Though all missing persons deserve our attention, the LBVP wants to make an extra effort for missing children. Since 1995 we have have cooperated closely with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) in the United States. NCMEC is a non-profit organization with tremendous resources aimed at finding missing children. An example of this is the possibility to “age progress” pictures of children who have been missing for a long time. In October of 1995 we became a part of NCMEC’s computer network, linking clearinghouses for missing children in all states, and in several other countries. NCMEC is the driving force behind the growing network of countries with a web site for missing children. The KLPD joined this network in 1999.

The cooperation with NCMEC, and the support of Computer Associates^® International, Inc., Sun Microsystems, Inc., and other sponsors, offers the opportunity to publish information and pictures of children, missing from The Netherlands, on the Internet. The information concerning the missing child, and its picture, can be printed on a small format poster. The main goal of this service is to locate the missing child as soon as possible.

We welcome your feedback and comments about our web site. If you have any information regarding a missing child, please call the police department mentioned on the poster of that missing child. Some of the police forces also offer an email address. For general comments or questions, please send us an email.