Police in Illinois are searching for a 21-year-old US Navy SEAL who was last seen on surveillance video leaving a bar near Lake Michigan in the early morning hours Saturday, CBS Chicago reports.
Seamus Gray, a sailor assigned to Naval Station Great Lakes, did not return on his scheduled date, according to Waukegan police. Gray’s family and police continued searching Thursday.
Waukegan Police
Waukegan Deputy Police Chief Brian Mullen said the search ended early Thursday morning because resources were depleted after numerous passes on land and in the air. Mullen said the search will resume on Friday.
Mullen said the crews are focusing on the coast and beaches of Lake Michigan. Friday’s search efforts will focus their efforts in the waters and south – toward the naval base.
“I also want to stress that the research didn’t just start today,” Mullen said. “We were here all day yesterday, and with the advances in technology and all the drones we’ve carried in the air and the lack of foliage in the air this time of year, we’ve really had an amazing ability to see — cover the ground yesterday and re-cover the ground today.”
Gray’s mother hopes to find her son.
“We never made contact,” Kerry Gray said. “The only time I didn’t hear from my son at all was when he was at boot camp. We would talk 10 times a day — whether it was silly memes, or just texting.”
Police and the family said Gray left the Great Lakes Naval Station on Friday night and headed to Waukegan for a night of St. Patrick’s Day festivities.
“He sent me the pictures,” Gray said. “We were on FaceTime.” “While I was out celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, he was out.”
Investigators found surveillance video footage of Gray leaving the Ibiza Bar on Genesee Street in Waukegan.
The video shows him leaving the bar alone through a back alley in a pink outfit, and he was later seen at the intersection of Sheridan Road and Washington Street around 1:40 a.m. Saturday and has not been seen or spoken to since leaving the bar. .
Mullen said he thought Gray would have returned to his base at 2 a.m., but the sailor never made it back to the Great Lakes Naval Base.
Waukegan police and firefighters did an extensive search of the area, including the lake front. Gray’s mother also checked with police near the Ibiza Bar and along Lake Michigan.
On Thursday afternoon, Mullen said video captured from nearby marinas showed Gray at the water’s edge directly on the lake.
Police no longer see any activity from Gray’s cell phone, which last rang near the lake, Mullen said. But the police and his family hold out hope.
“We know he’s in great shape, and hopefully he’s in there somewhere,” Mullen said.
Investigators in Waukegan are calling the case a missing persons case, which also involves the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, or NCIS.
But Kerry Gray added that there was also a video from when someone tried to pickpocket her son, and then there was an argument with a group of people. The bar manager confirmed the story about the 21-year-old getting into a fight over his wallet.
“We’re investigating that,” Mullen said. “We are aware of the video off the tape – and our investigators are working with NCIS to help identify the people who may have been in this video.”
Gray’s mother said on the phone that she feared the worst for her son—especially with so many days gone by—and given the fact that he had not checked into the naval base and had not been heard from.
“I would like someone to give us any information about my son Seamus,” said Kerry Gray. “This is my son. This is my man. His little brother is 14. He is a role model for my son. He is my life. So please help find Seamus.”
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