230 people in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania have been missing for months

Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania currently has 230 people classified as long-term missing, according to the state's criminal police office. The figure covers people who have been sought for more than three months and was recorded on September 2, 2026.

The oldest case dates to August 19, 1970. The list includes 26 people who went missing in the 1970s, 25 from the 1980s and 31 from the 1990s. Another 148 cases date from 2000 onward.

The police office cautioned that not every long-term missing person is presumed to have been the victim of a crime. That depends on the circumstances of the disappearance and the findings of each investigation. Some people are found years later. In one case, a person who disappeared as a minor was located in another country, where they had lived for a long time and no longer wanted contact with their family.

The large majority of missing-person cases in the northeastern German state end quickly. About 95 percent are classified as short-term cases, often involving minors who repeatedly run away. Many searches can be closed within hours or days when the person is found.