Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Loved ones hope public can help locate Black and missing individuals

By Stacy M. Brown
NNPA Senior National
Correspondent

Daniel Robinson drove his 2017 Jeep Renegade west into the desert terrain on Tuesday, July 20, 2021, and no one has seen the Buckeye, Arizona, man since.

Investigators discovered the car, described as blue-grey, about four miles from a worksite in a remote part of the desert where Robinson, 25, worked as a field geologist overseeing sites in the area.

At 5’8 inches tall, Robinson is African American, weighs 150 pounds, and has short black hair. He has brown eyes.

Police ask anyone with information to contact (623) 349-6400 or the Black and Missing Foundation at (877) 97-BAMFI.

 

(Photo via NNPA)

On September 21, 2022, Cayla Combs went missing in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She was last seen that morning near her residence in Marshall Shadeland. Her family described her as suicidal and possibly in possession of a firearm. They said Cayla drives a black 2018 Kia Sorento with Pennsylvania plate KZS4334.

Combs, 27, is described as biracial with a light complexion. She stands 5’1 inches and has brown eyes and long black hair.

Police ask anyone with information to call (412) 323-7141 or contact the Black and Missing Foundation.

Tiffany Foster, 36, was last seen on March 1, 2021, at Lakeside Apartments in Newnan, Georgia. Her vehicle was located nearly an hour away in Fulton County with her personal belongings inside.

Foster, who is Black, stands 5’2 inches and weighs about 220 pounds. She has hazel eyes and long black hair.

Police ask anyone with information to call (770) 253-1502 or contact the Black and Missing Foundation.

Family members said Robyn Austin might have suffered a mental health crisis when the 32-year-old Marine veteran disappeared on August 11, 2022, at the San Diego Veterans Center.

Austin is described as biracial, stands 5’6 inches, weighs 135 pounds, and has brown eyes and medium-length brown hair.

San Diego Police asked that anyone with information call (619) 531-2000 or contact the Black and Missing Foundation.

Derrica and Natalie started the nonprofit Black and Missing Foundation in 2008 with a mission to bring awareness to missing persons of color and to provide vital resources and tools to missing person’s families and friends.

As laid out in a 2021 HBO special, the foundation’s goal remains to educate the minority community on personal safety.

At one point, statistics from the FBI and other sources noted that approximately 64,000 black women and girls were missing, despite that specific demographic accounting for a relatively small percentage of the U.S. population.

Because of the efforts of the Wilson sisters, the Black and Missing Foundation has helped to find or bring closure to hundreds of cases involving missing persons of color.

The Black and Missing Foundation also helps families immediately after they report a missing loved one.

“Many times, the families don’t know how to file a police report, and often when they file the report, an officer tells them that it could be a runaway situation or maybe drugs are involved,” Natalie Wilson said during an earlier interview.

“We tell the families that they know their loved ones and know what’s not their behavior. So, we are there for the families to hold their hands or to listen.”

Wilson said the foundation is a voice for the families, and everyone should have a role in bringing awareness to the plight of missing persons of color.

“We have to help,” she said.

For information about the Black and Missing Foundation or to donate, visit www.bamfi.org.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

online wholesale business for goods from
China