CLEVELAND — "I just want to bring clarity and make sure we clear up some of the misinformation I believe is out there."
That was the message from Cleveland Police Chief Wayne Drummond as he held a press conference Wednesday morning amid recent national reports regarding missing children within the city.
Drummond said the number of missing children has increased by approximately 20 percent so far this year with 1,072 cases to date. He also repeatedly noted that 1,020 of those missing juveniles have returned and that the majority have been runaways.
“We do have missing individuals in the city of Cleveland," Drummond said. "No question about it. We take every single one of them seriously. Our detectives take it seriously. … That’s why in the city of Cleveland we have a dedicated detective in each of the districts.”
Prior to the press conference, city officials provided a link to this story from Fox News when referring to the "misleading information" in national media. The article's headline declares: "Dozens of kids vanish in Cleveland areas as police probe alarming trend."
Drummond was also joined by Detective Kevin Callahan, a missing persons liaison, and Chief Investigator Larry Henderhan of the Northeast Ohio Human Trafficking Task Force. You can watch the entire press conference in the video below.
Despite the 20 percent increase in cases, Drummond said they have no indications that people are targeting kids to use for human trafficking.
"We don’t have any information right now that would lead us to believe anything like that is occurring," he said. "However, if there are cases that come to our attention that has any indication that someone is being sex trafficked or kidnapped, we’ll bring our resources to bear.”
The press conference comes just a day after faith leaders gathered at Mt. Zion Church in Oakwood Village to raise awareness for missing kids and teens in the Cleveland area.
On Tuesday afternoon, Cleveland police told 3News that there are currently 40 missing juvenile cases that are active, with the oldest being reported on April 2, 2023. The Cleveland Division of Police also noted hat the number changes "very quickly," adding they currently don't have any cases of known abductions or kidnappings.