
Fears for missing man, 23, who vanished after getting a CAB to Rocky Mountain National Park
Blake Kieckhafer of Omaha has not been seen since Thursday, August 7, when he was last spotted at around 5.20 pm in the vicinity of the Colorado national park.
'Rocky Mountain National Park rangers began search efforts for Blake Kieckhafer, 23, of Omaha, Nebraska. Kieckhafer was reported missing to park rangers by family on Monday, August 11,' an official statement from Rocky Mountain National Park said.
His family members are growing more desperate by the day to bring him home and are frantically posting on social media in the hope that someone has information.
Kieckhafer's brother Justin said that his debit card transactions indicated that he made a purchase at O'Reilly's - an auto parts store - at around 2.30 pm that Thursday.
Justin shared on Facebook that his family believe he may have been having car trouble, which would explain the O'Reilly's purchase.
Kieckhafer's debit card was then used at a gas station in North Platte, Nebraska, before he allegedly got into an Uber.
He was last seen in the Upper Beaver Meadows area of Rocky Mountain National Park that evening, when he was dropped off by the ride share service, according to the statement from Rocky Mountain National Park.
Kieckhafer's family members are growing more desperate by the day to bring him home and are frantically posting on social media in the hopes that someone has information.
His family say that he purchased a day pass to Rocky Mountain National Park, which was scanned on Thursday evening at around 6pm.
Kieckhafer has not used his phone or debit card since last Thursday, according to family members.
'My heart is completely broken right now. There are no words to express how I feel, his mother Lisa Klabunde said on Facebook.
'I want to thank everyone for sharing Blake's post and getting it out there so we can find him.'
'I just want my son home,' she said in a separate post.
Kieckhafer is 5'11 and weights 180 lbs. He has buzzed short blonde hair, a mustache and blue/green eyes.
According to his 'missing person' poster, Kieckhafer was wearing a dark-colored t-shirt, dark-colored pants and a dark-colored baseball cap. He was carrying a small maroon day pack.
People online have questioned why he took a ride share service and why his family did not report him missing earlier.
His brother explained: 'We reported him not being home on Saturday with the police force in our county in Omaha. They told us that they couldn't report him until 7 days due to him being an adult.'
Justin added that his brother has never done anything like this before and has never not informed anyone of his intentions or plans, which is why his family finds the situation especially strange.
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