Family wants to hire private investigator in search of Arlington man with autism
The Snohomish County Sheriff's Office called off the search for a missing 21-year-old out of Arlington.
Jonathan Hoang's family isn't giving up hope; they've set up an online fundraiser to help pay for a private investigator.
He has autism, and the family is worried that he may have been kidnapped.
'I'm frightened that because of the label, him being autistic,' his sister Irene Hoang Pfister told KIRO 7. 'The people searching for him made an assumption, you know, that he just wandered off. But we think that someone took him.'
Hoang went missing on March 30.
He was last seen around 7:30 p.m. at his home in Arlington.
He was wearing a green shirt, khaki pants, and black slip-on shoes.
For about a week, rescue crews have been searching on foot, with K9 units, drones, and even helicopters to try and find Hoang. They haven't had any luck.
Pfister said the Snohomish County Sheriff's deputies told her they won't search again, that as an adult, he is free to leave.
'They said because there is no evidence of a crime taking place or foul play has taken place, they don't think there's much that major crimes will do,' she said, 'which is really, it was devastating to hear yesterday.'
At the time this article was written, the family's GoFundMe had raised nearly $7,000 to continue their search for Hoang. The family says the funds will be used to hire a private investigator, lawyers, and or other experts and advocated to find him.
If you'd like to donate, you can click here.
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