Dana James Benecke |
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'A Child Is Missing' credited with safe return
January 3, 2011
A Sioux Falls man reported missing in late December was found over the weekend safe and sound.
The 'A Child is Missing' program in Sioux Falls is being credited with his safe return.
The program sends a recorded alert including a description of the missing child to thousands of phones surrounding the target zone as designated by police.
It's designed to get the message out in the wee hours of investigation before an Amber Alert even takes effect. |
It's a resource that Sioux Falls business owner Julie Jones feels good about.
"Anything that can protect us I'm for it. If it's paid for with tax money why not?"
And it appears to be working.
When Dana James Benecke went missing December 30th he was found over the weekend, thanks to 'A Child is Missing.'
"When they saw this person they recalled the voicemail that went out and this person had a similar description," explains Sioux Falls Police Officer Sam Clemens.
The message can reach about a thousand people per minute and police call it just one more tool in their bag when it comes to missing kids.
"This is the first time we've activated the 'A Child is Missing' alert and obviously it worked well in this situation," says Clemens.
"There's a lot broader area - it's a great resource we need to utilize," says Jones.
The program puts all the missing kids information up front on the voicemail so people don't hang up or miss any information.
http://www.ksfy.com/Global/story.asp?S=13777704&clienttype=printable
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