Frankfort police conduct child abduction drill to prepare for real crime

There was a massive FBI search in the south suburbs Thursday as law enforcement learned how to respond to an abducted child.

Police in suburban Frankfort did a simulation and it involved nearly 75 surrounding districts in the drill.

It’s a rare crime, but one that police need to be ready for.

The FBI's Child Abduction Rapid Deployment Team took over an entire Frankfort neighborhood and nearby school for a drill involving local law enforcement from 75 Chicago area departments.

"Most Local agencies have never had to deal with something like this. So when in actual one occurs they don't even know where to start,” said Marty Parker of the FBI.

The scenario: a frantic mother called 911 to report her 10-year-old daughter has gone missing while walking to her tutor's home.

Police fanned out through the neighborhood and talked to potential witnesses, Neighborhood kids who know the missing girl, And at the command post they had to deal with an angry family member.

A real 10-year-old played the role of the abducted girl. Her parents said they're happy to help police and prevent it from happening in real life.

"As a parent you actually start thinking about stuff like that and it is scary any way we could help we decided to do it,” said father John Signore.

After several hours and A trail of planted clues, including video surveillance, police were led to a home about a mile from the abduction site where they arrested a suspect and freed the girl from inside the home.

Stranger abductions of children are extremely rare, with About 100 nationwide each year. But the FBI believes this drill will help when it happens and the minutes count.

"All the participants in this exercise and training can go back to their departments and have a comprehensive plan what to do when a child is missing,” said Janine Wheeler of the FBI.