UK police investigating missing persons cases are now permitted to pursue tips from the psychically endowed – including clairvoyants and witches, according to new guidelines from the regulatory board, The College of Policing. According to the new recommendations, constabularies should weigh reports from those claiming to possess "extrasensory perception," the UK Telegraph reported. "High-profile missing persons investigations nearly always attract the interest of psychics and others, such as witches and clairvoyants, stating that they possess extrasensory perception," the governing board noted, cautioning that information received from a psychic should be evaluated in the context of the case.
"These contacts usually come from well-intentioned people, but the motive of the individual should always be ascertained, especially where financial gain is included," the guidelines added. "The person’s methods should be asked for, including the circumstances in which they received the information and any accredited successes." Over the years, high-profile missing persons cases with exhaustive media coverage have attracted offers of psychic help. Many tips were investigated despite drastic budget cuts to law enforcement departments.
Detectives received dozens of psychic tips in the case of missing three-year-old Madeleine McCann who disappeared from a Portuguese holiday resort in 2007. Psychic profiler Carla Barton claims Madeline was kidnapped right under her parent's noses during dinner at the resort while clairvoyant Michael Winger believes the child was murdered. They may both be right. Despite a plethora of tips – psychics or otherwise - Madeline still remains missing.
In the United States, a unique crime-busting duo made headlines – a psychic and her detective partner. Forty years ago, in the middle of a yoga class, (the late) Annette Martin, had a chilling vision of a corpse suspended in air and of a street sign. Overwhelmed by the hideous imagery, she reported her findings to the desk sergeant and promptly went into a three hour trance, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. The case of a murdered young woman, Terry Listman, had not been reported and yet the psychic knew ALL the details, helping homicide detective Richard Keaton crack the case.