In Virginia, police have been busy addressing parents’ fears over an alleged mass kidnapping, though the state police insist these rumors are false, despite an increase in reports.
State police in Virginia responded to a rise in viral TikTok videos alleging that numerous child abductions have occurred since August 1.
Many other videos followed up by raising concerns of an alleged ‘mass kidnapper’, one of the viral videos urged users, ‘be careful everyone.’
‘A mass kidnapper in VA, 19 kids missing in 10 DAYS, watch your kids please,’ the video said.
But police shot down these claims in a damning statement, saying there is ‘no evidence’ of any mass abductions in the state.
Officials noted that the state has seen more reports of missing children on the National Center for Missing and Exploited Kids (NCMEC) website compared to other states.
This is attributed to the fact that Virginia State Police sends every missing child case to NCMEC, making them the most proactive in sharing these cases with the site.
In a release, the Virginia State Police stated they are not investigating any mass abduction reports in Virginia, and there is no evidence to suggest such events are happening.
The state police addressed the rise in viral TikTok videos claiming mass child abductions have been occurring since August 1.
One of the viral videos told users, ‘be careful everyone. A mass kidnapper in VA, 19 kids missing in 10 DAYS, watch your kids please,’ the video said
‘Virginia does this to centralize missing children’s cases so they can all be reviewed in one location. Many other clearinghouses post their cases to their own website. In Virginia, the MCC uses NCMEC as the clearinghouse site,’ the release said.
From August 3 to August 9, 88 children were reported missing to the MCC, according to the release.
An average of 98 children were reported missing each week in the state, police said.
‘Since January 2025 to current, a total of 3,274 children have been reported missing to the MCC. Of these, 141 (as of 10:30 am Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2025) are still missing or approximately 4%,’ the release said.
As well as the missing children, some social media users have expressed their discomfort over ice cream trucks seemingly patrolling late at night.
Police noted that many recent missing child reports stemmed from children running away from home, 13 News Now reported.
Authorities noted that almost all missing children cases are investigated at the local level, from the town where they are reported missing.
Viral videos raised concerns over ice cream trucks showing up in the late evening and overnight, but police have said there is ‘no evidence’ of any mass abductions in the state
Viral videos raised concerns over ice cream trucks showing up in the late evening and overnight, but police have said there is ‘no evidence’ of any mass abductions in the state
When a child is missing, local agencies have two hours to report it to state authorities in order for them to issue a CODI or Amber Alert, the release said.
Police urged parents to have children ‘practice making 911 calls’ from a cellphone and landline.
They also asked to make sure children know ‘not to accept rides from strangers and not to trust a stranger who suggests they go off alone together for any reason, for example, to find a lost puppy, etc.’
‘Tell your child to let you know immediately if another adult suggests keeping secrets from you. Never leave your child alone in the car, even for a minute’, police said.
