Ryan Larsen, a missing autistic boy from La Vista, Nebraska, was last seen on surveillance video at the Southfield apartment complex on May 17, 2021. His teacher raised the alarm after Ryan left school La Vista West Elementary at noon. Authorities hastily organized search efforts for the 11-year-old boy, hoping to find him before nightfall.
Larsen, a 5’8” boy, brown hair and hazel eyes, was wearing a black jacket, blue jeans and an Old Navy T-shirt, and had a polka dot umbrella at the time of his disappearance. He was known to occasionally hide from his family, so it was expected that they would find him rather quickly. However, Ryan Larsen has yet to show up a week after he left school on May 17, 2021.
Ryan’s parents and family are devastated that their beloved Larsen has yet to show up.
On April 24, 2021, La Vista Police Chief Bob Lausten held a press conference to provide an update on the search efforts for Ryan Larsen. He told reporters that Ryan’s family was distraught, with one of his sisters taking the disappearance “very badly.” He said:
“They are [the family] obviously, they are extremely upset and one daughter is taking it very hard. I think he saw his candid Facebook posts the other night, with the photos there. The mother, the other sisters, they were just destroyed.”
After Ryan disappeared from school, the teachers notified his mother and the police immediately. “I can’t think of anything more heartbreaking as a parent or staff member than having to search for a child,” a school spokesperson said. Authorities approached the search optimistic that they would find Ryan Larsen quickly.
They learned from the family that Ryan had a history of running and hiding. “He might as well be looking at us right now, laughing at us,” La Vista Police Capt. Jeremy Kinsey said. However, he added that they were concerned about Ryan’s diet and medications. He explained:
“We have a list of the medications you are taking. We’ve talked to doctors about the effects of those medications, and that’s concerning, some of the things you have to take. You can still get by without those meds, but they help you deal with all the different things that are out there.”
A multi-agency team has focused its search on an area identified by K9 unit dogs.
In his Monday afternoon press conference, Police Chief Bob Lausten stated that search efforts were focused on areas identified by K9 units. The K9 units were targeting areas at the northeast end of Walnut Creek Lake.
Authorities had lowered the lake’s water level throughout Monday to make it easier for divers to access the lower levels of the lake. The multi-agency team is searching on foot, by air and in the water during the day and night. Lausten stated that they are using “everything you can think of” including drones, sonars and rakes to search for Ryan.
Ryan pleaded with people to stop spreading false information via social media as it could hinder search efforts. “There’s been talk on social media of some keyboard warriors in basements saying, ‘We’ve got an arrest, we found Ryan,’ that’s absolutely false,” Ryan said. “Any information that comes out about this case will come from the La Vista Police Department.”
“We are still looking,” he added. Lausten did not offer a definitive answer when asked if they were considering foul play. “Until we find Ryan, we can’t get to the point of resolving that,” she said. If you see Ryan, you are advised to refrain from calling him by his name; instead, keep a safe distance and call 911.
Categories: Biography
Source: vcmp.edu.vn