Missing, murdered and hidden

Murders of missing people are relatively rare yet are among the most complex of homicide investigations. A missing person may never be reported to the police or may be reported weeks, months or years after they were last seen. As such, the tools and techniques that the police routinely draw upon are not readily available in many of these kinds of homicide investigations, adding to their complexity. Very little research has examined cases concerning people who go missing and who are later murdered. This chapter seeks to advance our understanding of these homicides, illustrating how certain victim and event characteristics may hinder the police investigation.