INDIANAPOLIS -- A nationwide database could help provide closure for the families of missing persons.

Indianapolis police are now feeding information to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, or NamUs, intended to help centralize the effort to identify remains found across the country, 6News' Jack Rinehart reported.

With more that 4,400 unidentified human remains cases each year and close to 100,000 active missing persons cases on any given day, the National Institute of Justice created a national repository for the missing and the dead.

Police, medical examiners and family members can search the database for information, from a specific tattoo to certain dental work, to see if they match remains found in another state.

"We're going to use all the tools that are available to us," said Capt. David Allender, who oversees the department's Missing Persons Branch. "If this particular tool works out … we'll use anything that we think we'll help us locate people."

The first case Indianapolis police entered into the NamUs system was the disappearance of Bonnie Schultz on July 4, 1997.

Investigators said they are hoping her DNA and dental records could one day lead to a match.

"I think Bonnie is the victim of foul play," said missing persons Detective Dan Kistner. "Perhaps in another state, maybe some day if something is discovered, we could get a match through NamUs and be notified."

In 2008, 5,214 people were reported missing in Indianapolis. Fifty-six of those cases have yet to be solved.

More Information: National Missing and Unidentified Persons System