Families are handed a lot of advice. Most of it can wait. This cannot, and it has to happen in this order.
The sequence
File a police report immediately. There is no waiting period.
Get the National Crime Information Center entry confirmed and write down the NCIC file number before the officers leave. For adults that entry is voluntary for the agency, which is exactly why you ask for it in writing. Source: Source ↗
Get the agency case number and the investigator's name and direct contact.
Create the NamUs case at Source ↗ — NamUs is the only national repository for missing, unidentified and unclaimed persons, and it provides DNA analysis, forensic odontology, fingerprint examination and anthropology at no cost. Source: Source ↗
Because NamUs has no military field, put the branch, service number, dates of service, unit and every military tattoo into the free-text "circumstances of disappearance" box. That box is the only place a veteran's service will be captured at all. Source: Source ↗
Provide a family reference DNA sample through the investigating agency or medical examiner. It is a cheek swab. It is the step that closes decades-old cases — one veteran on these pages was identified by his daughter's DNA, another by his son's.
Preserve the missing person's belongings. Do not clean the room. A hairbrush, a toothbrush, worn clothing and bedding carry DNA and scent.
If the veteran went missing from a VA facility
VA policy on wandering and missing patients requires an immediate preliminary search of nearby wards, clinics, lobbies and stairwells, and a full search of grounds, buildings, parking areas and contiguous property if the preliminary search fails. VA Police must participate in full searches, and VA Police must contact outside law enforcement to file a missing person report so the person is entered into NCIC. Facilities set their own search timeframes locally — there is no national clock, and that is the gap families run into. Source: Source ↗
What to do, in order.
Notify VA Police at the facility and ask explicitly that the person be treated as an at-risk missing patient. That is what triggers the stairwell search.
File with the local civilian police department and confirm in writing that the person was entered into NCIC. VA entry is not automatic, and the Bedford case turned on exactly this.
Create the NamUs case.
Say explicitly if the veteran lived in an on-campus facility that is not run by the VA. The Inspector General found VA police had no procedure for non-patients missing on VA property.
If the facility does not act, escalate to the VA Office of Inspector General hotline at Source ↗ and to a congressional office.
Numbers that work
Veterans Crisis Line — dial 988 then press 1; text 838255; TTY 800-799-4889. Free, confidential, around the clock, and open to family and friends calling about a veteran. Source ↗
Coaching Into Care — 888-823-7458, weekdays 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern. Specifically for family and friends trying to get a veteran into care, which is the window before a disappearance. Source: Source ↗
National Call Center for Homeless Veterans — 1-877-424-3838, around the clock, open to family and friends assisting a veteran. Source: Source ↗
NamUs — Source ↗ — namus@usdoj.gov
Service records
A missing-person case involving a veteran often stalls on proving the service. Records come from the National Personnel Records Center, 1 Archives Drive, St. Louis, Missouri 63138, 314-801-0800.
Apply online through eVetRecs at Source ↗ or by Standard Form 180 at Source ↗
Eligible next of kin for a deceased veteran are an un-remarried surviving spouse, father, mother, son, daughter, sister or brother, and every request must be signed and dated. Source: Source ↗
Organizations
Missing in America Project — Source ↗ — locates, identifies and inters the unclaimed cremated remains of veterans. It handles unclaimed remains; it does not search for living missing veterans.
VA National Cemetery Administration, unclaimed veteran remains — Source ↗ — eligibility verification through the National Cemetery Scheduling Office, 1-800-535-1117.
The Charley Project — Source ↗ — the largest privately run missing-persons database in the country. A documentation resource; it does not take tips and does not investigate.
The Doe Network — Source ↗ — volunteer database of missing persons and unidentified remains.
Crime Stoppers — anonymous tips and reward administration. 1-800-222-8477.