By Néstor García-Barceló, Miguel Ángel Alcázar Córcoles, Javier Revuelta Menéndez, Penny Woolnough, José Luis González Álvarez 

The study explores in depth the relationship between missing persons’ psychosocial and criminological characteristics/circumstances and violent-fatal outcomes (suicide and homicide). A relational analytical explicative study of 929 cases and controls was designed using a retrospective and stratified design. Data gathering was conducted through the content analysis of judicial and police information, as well as the development of psychological autopsy techniques and semi-structured interviews with the persons involved in the missing person cases including offenders in prison. Bivariate and multivariate statistical techniques were utilized for analyses. The findings showed that there are different risk and protective factors which can distinguish between a good state of health, suicide, and homicide outcomes. This research entails implications for prevention and police risk assessment systems.. 

European Journal on Criminal Policy and Research (2024) 30:545–565