A 25-year missing persons case will be closed thanks to a USA Today article and a "tenacious" sheriff's deputy. The May story's headline was straightforward: "He's been in an LA hospital for weeks and they have no idea who he is. Can you help?" The article that followed explained St. Francis Medical Center in Lynwood, California, received a non-verbal patient who was found in South LA on April 15 but had been unable to identify him. He was thought to be in his mid-60s. In a Tuesday article, USA Today explained someone was apparently able to help: a person who saw the article sent it to a woman who contacted the Lassen County Sheriff's Office on Friday saying she believed the man to be her brother.
She said her brother had gone missing in Doyle, California, in 1999 and had not been heard from since. Sheriff's Deputy Derek Kennemore contacted St. Francis but was told the man had been transferred to another hospital; that hospital confirmed the man was still in their care. His fingerprints were a match, the sheriff's office said, and the family will be reunited soon. Names have been withheld for the family's privacy.
The sister "was super excited," Capt. Mike Carney tells ABC News. "She was very appreciative that we took the time just to follow up on it. She was over the moon and anxious to call other family members to let them know." It's a "perfect example" of not giving up on missing persons cases, he said. In a Facebook post, the sheriff's office commended Deputy Kennemore "on his tenacity with this case. We would also like to thank the Los Angeles Police Department for their assistance in identifying the missing man and closing out this 25 year old case." (More missing person stories.)
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
