AC360 411: Hope in the search for missing children

Editor’s Note: Tonight Anderson Cooper will be reporting live from Cleveland with the latest developments on the three long-missing women who were found alive in a home on the city’s west side.

Two of the three women who were rescued from a Cleveland home after being held captive for years returned to their own homes today. Amanda Berry and her 6-year-old daughter, who was born in captivity, heard cheers from the crowd that gathered to celebrate her return. A few hours later, a similar scene played out at Gina DeJesus’ home, where several family members stepped up to a microphone in front of the residence. Gina’s mother, Nancy, shared what she did when she was first reunited with her daughter. “I grabbed her and hugged her. I didn’t want to let go,” she said. “I still feel as if it is a dream. I still pinch myself.” A third women rescued, Michelle Knight, remains hospitalized. The rescue of these three women gives hope to families all across America searching for a loved one.

Here’s the AC360 411 on missing children:

• 32,225 The number of active missing person records for children 18 and under in the FBI’s National Crime Information Center, as of Dec. 31, 2012.
• 8,729 The number of open cases in the Missing Persons Database run by the Department of Justice.
• 80 The percentage of children reported missing who are runaways.
• 115 The number of cases each year that are stranger abductions.
• 97.7 The percentage of children found by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, up from 62 percent in 1996
• 642 The number of children that have been found through an AMBER Alert, since it started in 1996.
• 75 The percentage of stranger abduction victims who are killed in the first 3 hours, according to FBI.
• 1-800-THE-LOST The toll-free phone number for the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children where you can report information on missing children.