Betty-Ann Blaine (left), executive director of Hear the Children's Cry, points out a few things to the members of the media as Paulette Green (centre), deputy superintendent of police from the National Investigation Bureau, and Corporal Natalie Lawrence from the Constabulary Communications Network look on, during a press conference at The Jamaica Pegasus yesterday. - Peta-Gaye Clachar/Photographer

With a significant increase in the number of missing children in society, head of Hear the Children's Cry, Betty-Ann Blaine, is calling for the Government to launch an active missing-children's unit in the Jamaica Constabulary Force.

"The problem of missing children in Jamaica is now a major crisis of epidemic proportion," Blaine said, while giving her report, at a press conference at The Pegasus Hotel yesterday.

A special unit

Blaine said the unit should have arms in each regional police division so the problem could be attacked in a coordinated manner across the country.

Up to September this year, 1,206 children had been reported missing. Of that figure, 676 have returned home while three have died.

The heartbreaking numbers for this nine-month period far outstrip the 960 children missing during 2008.

While expressing concern about the 718 children who are yet to be accounted for, Blaine raised the questions of whether there was human trafficking in Jamaica, whether there were abduction rings operating in the country, and if there was a problem with paedophiles in society.

Paulette Green, deputy superintendent at the National Investigation Bureau, said the information the NIB received was either incorrect or was of little use to the investigation and hampered the police.

The deputy superintendent said as a way to help the police persons should report incidents of this nature immediately.

"It's no 24 hours, as we have been hearing. Investigations commence immediately. So if you wait until three days to report the incident the police can't be blamed," she said.