Rise in missing children in Cleveland alarms advocates
Newburgh Heights (Cleveland suburb) Police Chief John Majoy and Sylvia Colon, who founded the Cleveland Family Center that helps families of missing persons, talk about missing kids in the Cleveland area.
Colby Richards, a 31-year-old Texas father who went missing from an early morning walk on May 26, seemed tired at work in the days prior to his disappearance, coworkers told his family.
Richards woke up early that Friday around 5 a.m., but when he did not return to his bedroom to get ready for work, his wife got up to check on him and noticed that their backyard gate was open and Richards was nowhere in sight.
"I talked to a couple of his friends, and I talked to his supervisor, and they basically said he seemed tired. Granted, he's got small kids at home. Sleep is usually pretty precious when you have little ones at home," his cousin, Allison Fox, told Fox News Digital. "That's probably all it was."
Richards worked at an engineering firm, and his coworkers told family that he had appeared to be zoning out at his computer, Fox said. She shared the information with authorities, who have spoken with those who worked with Richards.
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Colby Richards, 31, has been missing since he apparently left his home in Spring, Texas, on May 24. (Montgomery County Sheriff/Facebook)
The Richards family continues to search the Woodlands area of Texas, north of Houston, for any signs of the 31-year-old father of two.
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The Montgomery County Sheriff's Office (MCSO) deployed search teams to a pedestrian trail near the Richards' home in Spring, Texas, after his wife reported him missing last week and "found a water bottle of his near the trailhead in the wooded area with trails and stuff behind where they live," Fox previously told Fox News Digital.
The Richards' home on Musgrove Place in Spring has a backyard with a gate that opens up to a street, and across that street is an entrance to a Greenway trail where Colby's water bottle was found. (Google Maps)
Other than the water bottle, there have been no other signs of Richards or his potential whereabouts. He left home that morning without his phone or wallet, Fox said.
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MCSO spokesperson Scott Spencer told Fox News Digital in a statement that its investigation is ongoing, and the sheriff's office "is not currently searching areas where there is no credible information that would suggest Mr. Richards is in that area, including all areas previously searched by our agency and Montgomery County Search and Rescue."
Fox said it is normal for Richards to wake up around 5 a.m. or 6 a.m. for work. He had recently started a full-time job at an engineering firm in the area but also works part-time as a baseball coach — something he's been doing for years, Fox said. (Montgomery County Sheriff/Facebook)
"Our detectives are in the field currently and are following up on leads and information as it is received," Spencer said. "[MCSO] shares the family and community concerns regarding Mr. Richards' whereabouts and safety and is doing everything in our ability to find Mr. Richards and bring him home."
The Richards family has contacted Texas EquuSearch, a nonprofit organization that assists with finding missing persons, which is awaiting approval from the sheriff's office to help.
Fox says her family is not giving up hope in finding Richards.
Richards' water bottle was discovered "near the trailhead in the wooded area with trails and stuff behind where they live," his cousin explained. (Facebook/Help Us Find Colby Richards)
"My request to provide information previously still stands. Keep your eyes out looking for him, and if you see anything weird … contact the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office," Richards' cousin said.
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The Richards' home on Musgrove Place in Spring has a backyard with a gate that opens up to a street, and across that street is an entrance to a Greenway Trail where Colby's water bottle was found.
The Montgomery County Sheriff's Office called off their search for missing Colby Richards in the Woodlands area on Wednesday morning, according to the Richards family. (Facebook/Help Us Find Colby Richards)
Fox previously said it was normal for Colby to wake up around 5 a.m. or 6 a.m. for work, and while he would sometimes go on early walks, it wasn't a regular occurrence.
The family has created a GoFundMe page titled "Help us find Colby Richards" to raise funds for the volunteer search.
Colby was last seen wearing a T-shirt, black shorts and gray Under Armour sneakers.
