U.S. Marshals have recovered two “critically missing” children whose whereabouts have been unknown since they vanished from Redmond, Washington, in December 2023.
In early August 2026, the Redmond Police Department and the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children requested assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS). Investigators from the U.S. Marshals Missing Child Unit worked to locate the children and determined they were in the greater Washington, D.C., area, according to a news release from the USMS.
It was determined that the children’s mother had taken them after losing custody and concealing their names in an attempt to evade law enforcement. Members of the USMS Missing Child Unit followed investigative leads across three states, with the assistance of the U.S. Marshals Carolinas Regional Fugitive Task Force, the Baltimore County Police Department, and the Arlington Police Department.
The children were safely located on Tuesday, Sept. 16, and returned to their father. The Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act (JVTA) of 2015 enhanced the U.S. Marshals’ authority to assist law enforcement with recovering endangered missing children, regardless of whether a fugitive or sex offender was involved. The Marshals established a Missing Child Unit to oversee and manage the implementation of its enhanced authority under the act.
Since the passage of the JVTA in 2015, the USMS has contributed to the location or recovery of 5,281 missing children.
Anyone with information on wanted fugitives is urged to contact the nearest U.S. Marshals office, the U.S. Marshals Service Communications Center at 1-800-336-0102 or the USMS Tips App.
For more information about the U.S. Marshals, visit https://www.usmarshals.gov/.
