‘We’ll never give up looking’: Search for missing Arlington, WA man enters 4th month
The search continues for Jonathan Hoang
The family and community of Jonathan Hoang have been searching for the 21-year-old autistic man since he disappeared from Arlington four months ago.
ARLINGTON, Wash. - For four months, the family of an Arlington man who disappeared has been asking: where is Jonathan Hoang?
"Without him here, it’s like there is a big gaping hole in our heart that is irreplaceable," said Thao Hoang, Jonathan’s dad.
He and his wife Anne sat side by side holding hands, drawing strength from one another. They told FOX 13 they are hopeful they’ll find their son, but they say sometimes, the pain of not knowing where he is can be overwhelming.
"It’s a roller coaster of emotions throughout the day," Thao Hoang said.
"It’s scary and nerve-wracking, and we just feel sorry for ourselves sometimes and then we think Jonathan is in a lot worse place than we are," Anne Hoang, Jonathan’s mom, said.
Timeline:
The 21-year-old, who has a developmental disability, has been missing since March. His family says, while he is 21 years old, he has the mindset of an 8 or 9-year-old, and they believe someone befriended him online, then lured him out of his home.
Last month, they got a glimmer of hope when a Ring doorbell camera captured a video of someone believed to be Jonathan in Kirkland, which is about an hour away from where Jonathan lives in Arlington.
"It looks like he was trying his hardest to get home even though he didn’t know his address," Thao Hoang said.
Since then, they’ve had some leads, but still no Jonathan despite online posts, flyers and multiple community search efforts.
"When we go out there and call his name, it’s like the world is so big and we’re so small, and we definitely need the community to have their eyes and ears out there for anything that might seem out of place because that might be the ticket to bring Jonathan home," Anne Hoang said.
At The Coffee Stand in Kirkland, each drink they serve now comes with a sleeve with Jonathan’s photo and QR code.
"You come by and get it in the morning and then you have your cup on your desk all day so you’re looking at it all day and you can recognize the picture, you can recognize the face," said Randi Manuel, co-owner of The Coffee Stand.
Some have likened it to a modern-day face on the milk carton.
"It only takes one person to be like, ‘oh wait, maybe that’s him,’" said Patrick Kettell, The Coffee Stand co-owner. "We both have teenage kids, so if it were us, we’d want someone to help."
"It’s important in times like this for everybody to get together and rally to help your neighbor out," Manuel said.
Jonathan’s parents told FOX 13 they are grateful for all the support from the community as well as across the country, and even support from Australia and Europe.
This week, the family is holding a "Find Jonathan Week of Action," which includes a Honk and Wave event on Saturday in Everett.
"We’ll never give up looking for him until we find him," Thao Hoang said.
He told FOX 13 that if someone is behind Jonathan’s disappearance and took him, they won’t press any charges, they just want him back.
A $100,000 reward is being offered for information that leads to finding Jonathan.
The Source: Information in this story came from original FOX 13 Seattle reporting and interviews with the family of Jonathan Hoang and The Coffee Stand.
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