KALAMAZOO, MI – Along with many other PIs, Carl Clatterbuck notes that many people want to reunite with missing loved ones at this time of year. Adopted children, for example, often wish for a holiday season of reunions. However, Clatterbuck and other PIs caution clients that reunions between biological parents and adopted children sometimes require patience and time. Adoption agencies and the Kalamazoo County Probate Court report that they get more requests for information about adoptions (usually from adopted children seeking their biological parents) between October and December. Many experts advise against locating families prior to the holidays. This time of year tends to be stressful already.

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SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – For PIs, social networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook are playing an increasing role in investigations. One of the largest PI companies in Australia now hires staff specifically to search for missing persons and other fraudsters online using social networking sites. The company reports finding 30-40 debtors and felons a week through social networking sites. While the sites are useful for PIs, however, investigators have found that they need to track and find social networking criminals, many who use sites such as MySpace and FaceBook to find and lure underage children.

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LANCASTER, PA – A PI investigating the case of missing nurse Toni Lee Sharpless believes that the woman is alive and will be reunited with her family. Sharpless has allegedly been spotted at several locations since disappearing in August after a night out on the town. PI Eileen Law has taken on the case on a pro bono basis, and although Sharpless’s credit cards and cell phone have not been used since the woman’s disappearance, Law believes that Sharpless is alive. Law has established a website, www.missingtonisharpless.com, to help witnesses come forward and to raise awareness about the case.

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PHOENIX, AZ – According to the President of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, Ernie Allen, 80% of the 400,000 registered sex offenders in the United States are unaccounted for. Even though they are registered and are supposed to inform authorities of their place of residence, no one knows where they are living. Along with Allen, experts believe that some of the child abduction cases across the country may be due to these sex offenders. In many cases, parents who have children missing are forced to pay for PI help, since local police authorities often allow missing child cases to become cold cases after a few months of investigation.

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NEW YORK, NY - Robert Rahn, president of Management Resources Ltd., has turned to social networking to help combat a “cold” missing person’s case. With the help of Kathy Fealy, an online marketing executive, Rahn has implemented social media tools such as Google Alerts, Facebook and MySpace pages and YouTube videos about Vernon Jones, Rahn’s cold case subject who disappeared in 1993. Rahn has noted that overtime many traditional investigative methods and media outlets can become expensive and difficult to continuously engage the general public. Now, Rahn feels current social networking tools could be a “great untapped resource.”

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PHILADELPHIA, PA – PI Eileen Law has been hired by the family of Toni Sharpless, a woman who has been missing for more than a month. Sharpless disappeared after leaving a party. At the party, she appeared to be intoxicated and her friends unsuccessfully tried to persuade her not to drive. Law was hired by the family and has told media that Sharpless was seen in New Jersey since her disappearance.

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FAULKNER, AR – Electrician Chris Jones disappeared more than three years ago and investigators are still baffled by the cold case. Jones’ last known location was in his home, where he had been released after spending some time in the hospital for gout. His condition made it unlikely he would wander far, and his home showed no signs of a struggle. The family have created a $10,000 reward. They have hired PIs and even a psychic but no one has been able to find anything that might uncover where Jones is.

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FORT LAUDERDALE, FL – Donna Zimmer met her brother Max Martin for the first time in 34 years after a family dispute separated the siblings for over three decades. Max tried repeatedly to find his sister and even hired PIs to trace her. Eventually, his teenage daughter met a friend whose father was also a PI. That PI, Steve Taylor, took another try at the case. Within four days, he had leads and handed Max a list of possible phone numbers. The second number Max dialed was answered by his sister.

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FORT LAUDERDALE, FL – Toddler Benjamin Kaiser-Griffin went missing over a month ago from a suspected abduction. His mother believed that the child’s father abducted him. The boy is now back in his Arizona home, thanks in part to the efforts of PIs, local authorities and a website. PIs, police, and the owners of NationalVigilForHope.org all searched for Kaiser-Griffin, who was located in Florida and returned safely to his mother.

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PRINCE GEORGE, BC – Private Investigator Ray Michalko has volunteered years of his time investigating the disappearance of women along Highway 16. Now, police have been searching a property on Isle Pierre in connection with the case. Michalko notes that he investigated the area as part of his private investigation, but did not find anything. PI Michalko believes that the nine women killed in the area were not killed by the same person; and also notes that since the high-profile police search, he has gotten more tips and leads. Michalko does not believe the police found anything in the Isle Pierre area, although he notes that the police do not share their finds with him. However, as a PI, he is required by law to turn over any relevant information about the case to the police.

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