Fort Campbell soldier missing after discharge

Missing: recently discharged Fort Campbell soldier
WPSD
Web Editor - Amanda Roberts
Story Created: Mon Dec 9, 2013

MADISONVILLE, Ky - The Kentucky State Police is requesting help in the search for a recently discharged missing soldier.

Jordan T. Welch, 21 has been out of contact for several weeks. His sister, Jennifer Wheeler contacted KSP about his disappearance.

Welch received a general discharge from the US Army September 24th and was stationed at Fort Campbell. Wheeler last had contact with Welch by phone September 29th; he had told his sister he was working a construction job but did not indicate the job location.

Jordan Thomas Welch has brown hair and eyes, is 5'9'' and weighs approximately 115 pounds.

Anyone with information is encouraged to contact KSP at (270) 676-3313 or call toll-free at (800) 222-5555
go here for updates

Fort Hood Solider and Wife Missing

Fort Hood Soldier, Wife Reported Missing
KWTX News

FORT HOOD (November 1, 2013) Fort Hood soldier E.J. Grey, 23, and his wife Courtney, 19, both of Pueblo, Colo., have been reported missing and E.J. Grey has been listed as AWOL since Tuesday, authorities confirmed Friday.

The two were last seen on Sunday.

A family member reported them missing to Killeen police on Wednesday.

They could be driving a dark blue Volkswagen Bug with Texas license plates.

Iraq veteran missing from South Carolina

Iraq veteran missing from Simpsonville
FOX Carolina
By Joseph Pereira
Updated: Sep 12, 2013

Kristopher "Dallas" Campbell has been missing since Monday.

(Source: Campbell Family)

SIMPSONVILLE, SC (FOX Carolina)
An Iraq war veteran has been missing from Simpsonville since Monday afternoon, according to the Greenville County Sheriff's Office.

Kristopher "Dallas" Campbell, 33, went missing after leaving his home carrying nothing but a small backpack and a cell phone. His wife said that he served two tours in Iraq and suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and other health issues.
read more here

News Press puts out help request to find son days after his body was found

I don't know what is going on with the media these days but this was released today.

Southwest Florida mom asks for help to find her soldier son
Anyone with information urged to call military law enforcement Jul. 28, 2013
Written by Philip Grey
Leaf-Chronicle
read more here

Really odd considering the same reporter wrote this

Body found on post is that of missing soldier

Family members notified Friday evening The Leaf Chronicle Written by Philip Grey Jul. 19, 2013 FORT CAMPBELL, KY. — A family member of Spc. Brandon David Bertolo has confirmed that the body found in a Fort Campbell training area Friday morning is that of the 23-year-old “Strike” Brigade soldier, missing since July 14.

Another family searching for missing soldier with PTSD

Sad Update
Family's search for Erik Jorgensen comes to an end

California mom concerned about missing Boise soldier's whereabouts
ABC News
By Nicole Pineda
CREATED JUL. 21, 2013
Nicole Pineda reports on the missing Erik Jorgenson
Video by IdahoOnYourSide.com

The family and friends of a 26-year old Boise man wait for word tonight. Searchers have been combing the Boise mountains for the past few days; and still no sign of Erik Jorgenson.

"On Thursday night he sent out a mass text message basically saying he was a waste of oxygen on this earth," said Cindy Crow, Erik’s mother. A message to make a mother's heart stop.

The moment Cindy Crow received that text message from her son; she left her home in California and headed to Idaho. She called police to check on him but they only confirmed what she already knew Erik was missing.

The only clues he left behind a text message and his beloved dog. Friends and Family all agree Erik would never leave his best friend.

Erik suffers from severe post traumatic stress disorder after serving for a year in Afghanistan. His mother says this month is a particularly bad one.
read more here

Spc. Brandon David Bertolo's body found at Fort Campbell

Body found on post is that of missing soldier
Family members notified Friday evening
The Leaf Chronicle
Written by
Philip Grey
Jul. 19, 2013

FORT CAMPBELL, KY. — A family member of Spc. Brandon David Bertolo has confirmed that the body found in a Fort Campbell training area Friday morning is that of the 23-year-old “Strike” Brigade soldier, missing since July 14.

The announcement was made at 8:30 p.m. on a Facebook page the family has been using to track information on the soldier after the Army told them he failed to report for duty on Monday to his unit. The family member posted the news following notification of Bertolo’s mother, Anita Flores of Fort Myers, Fla., by Army officials.

Bertolo’s body was found at approximately 8:30 a.m. in a training area near South Group Patrol Road, outside of main post, a few miles west of Cole Park Golf Course.

Bertolo had been considered AWOL by the Army, according to a Fort Campbell press release issued Thursday afternoon, which said the soldier was under investigation on an unrelated matter.
read more here

Soldier's Mom needs help finding missing son

Soldier's Mom needs help finding missing son

Mom asks help to find soldier
Anyone with information urged to call military law enforcement
The Leaf-Chronicle
Written by Philip Grey
Jul. 18, 2013

CLARKSVILLE, TENN. — A mother and Fort Campbell law enforcement are looking for anyone with information in the case of a soldier, Spc. Brandon David Bertolo, 23, possibly missing since July 14.

Spc Brandon David Bertolo (center) has not reported to his unit or had contact with anyone since July 14. The soldier is stationed at Fort Campbell with 2nd Battalion, 502nd Infantry, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division. / SUBMITTED

Anyone with information is urged to call military law enforcement at 270-956-4900 or contact Anita Flores at 512-663-9620. A flyer posted at several Facebook sites has an incorrect number for Flores.

Bertolo is 6’ 2” with brown hair and eyes. His home of record is Fort Myers, Fla.

He is driving what has been described as a powder-blue 2012 Lexus ES-type car. No license plate number is available at present.

He is stationed at Fort Campbell as a line medic with Bravo Company, 2nd Battalion, 502nd Infantry, 2nd Brigade Combat Team “Strike,” 101st Airborne Division.

Information for the family can be posted at a Facebook page, “Find Missing Soldier SPC Brandon David Bertolo.”
read more here

Family hangs onto hope after Spec. Kelli Bordeaux declared dead

Missing soldier's family holds out hope for news
May. 28, 2013
The Associated Press

ST. CLOUD, FLA. — Relatives of a missing soldier the Army has declared dead say they believe she’s still alive.

Brig. Gen. David K. MacEwen declared 23-year-old Spc. Kelli Bordeaux deceased as of May 20. That will allow her family to receive military death benefits.

Bordeaux was stationed at Fort Bragg, N.C. It’s been more than a year since the central Florida native left her apartment on April 13, 2012, and headed to Froggy Bottoms, a bar about a half-mile from her home. Early the next morning, witnesses reported seeing her leaving the bar with a homeless sex offender. He has denied any role in her disappearance.

Searches by groups of volunteers looking for Bordeaux’s remains in secluded areas near the base have been unsuccessful.

No one has yet been criminally charged in the case.

Bordeaux’s brother, Matt Henson, told WFTV in Orlando that he’s still in touch with North Carolina investigators. A reward has grown from $25,000 to $33,000
read more here

Army Specialist Mason Van Kuiken missing since March from Fort Carson

Where is this missing soldier from Bradenton?
WTSP News
Tammie Fields
May 21, 2013

BRADENTON, Florida - In Manatee County, there's a mystery over a 22-year-old missing soldier who seems to have vanished without a trace.

The parents of U.S. Army Specialist Mason Van Kuiken say they've made phone numerous phone calls to try to figure out what happened to their son. Dru Love and Mike Van Kuiken say so far this is the best timeline they've been able to develop:

Army specialist Mason Van Kuiken from Bradenton is stationed at Ft. Carson, Colorado. He left the base without permission on March 14 when he had three days off.

He drove to the Fort Hood, Texas area to visit his best friend, Will, who is also from Bradenton but is stationed there.

But as Mason was headed back to Colorado a deputy pulled him over in the small town of Goldthwaite, Texas on March 15.

A Mills County Sheriff's Office deputy told the family weapons were found inside Mason's vehicle that he didn't have proper permits for so he was arrested and his car impounded. Mason bonded out of jail the evening of March 17, and a bail bondsman employee took him to a motel in Early, Texas, where Mason's debit card was used to stay the night.
read more here


Recent missing reports

Iraq Veteran missing in Gainesville Larry Vantassel, Gainesville.

Marine Combat Vet Jonathan Pablik is missing in the Seattle

Fort Jackson Wife Nominated Spouse of the Year

I received an email from Pamela Larson about this nomination. She is a soldier's wife but she was a soldier as well. She was wounded in Iraq. Pamela is Mom, but has also taken on another labor of love, helping soldiers and spouses with PTSD.

Read Pam's story and if you learn nothing about what is asked of military families, then you've already been paying attention. The trouble is too many have no clue.

If her name sounds familiar to you it is because Pamela and her husband were also the subjects of many posts here. Her husband, Sgt. Robert Larson was having a hard time with PTSD and for a while was missing. This was followed up by Fort Jackson, Missing Soldier Suffers from PTSD, Long Untreated TBI Pamela was frantic but when the Military search for Sgt. Rob Larson ended this Wife turned to Facebook to find missing husband. On October 22, the news came out that Sgt. Larson returned home.

On February 21st, 2013 Pamela Larson was named a finalist for Military Spouse of the Year. Pamela Larson is Fort Jackson’s Spouse of the Year and is one of three Army spouses who are eligible for this impressive honor. For Pam, this campaign is not about gaining a title, it is about saving her husband's life and healing her family from the wounds of war. Her fight is not for her soldier, but more so for the man underneath the uniform.

In the painful journey of PTSD and TBI which their lives have become, Pam now recognizes that she is not alone in this fight. She strives to be a resource and lifeline to other soldiers, veterans, and their loved ones to help them cope and treat these silent war-inflicted wounds.

Pamela Larson is more than just a Military Spouse, she is a purple heart veteran, a mother of two, a college student, a small business owner, and an activist for soldiers battling Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injuries. But first and foremost, she is a military spouse and mom.

Pam’s heroic story did not start that October day in 2006 when she was shot on her last 36 hours of duty in Iraq; this story began the day that her wounded husband went missing from their South Carolina home after a PCS move to Fort Jackson. Against all odds, Pamela used social media to gain resources to lead a nationwide search. Without the active help of military resources, she and the connections she sought out, tracked her soldier to a remote camp in Minnesota after an 8-day search, where he was found in a delusional state.

Since her husband’s return, Pamela is now utilizing her resources to find the help her husband needs and to assist all active military members, their spouses, and the veterans who struggle daily fighting this silent epidemic of PTSD and TBI. Through her PTSD support pages, Pam is also working daily to help spouses and loved ones get the help they need to assist in their soldier’s recovery.

Along with being an activist, Pamela has been a strong support to Military families through the creation of her in-home business, Teddys from the Troops. Teddys from the Troops was started as a way to help Military families to cope when a loved one is deployed. The bears are made out of used ACUs to provide a level of comfort while the soldier is away. Pamela also donates one bear a month to a family member of a wounded warrior.

Voting for Military Spouse of the Year will take place on March 5th and absolutely anyone can vote. This voting will determine both Military-wide Spouse of the Year as well as Branch-wide Spouse of the Year. Military Spouse of the Year will be announced on May 9th at a luncheon in Washington DC.

Remains found near Fort Bragg may be Kelli Bordeaux

March 25, 2013
Kelli Bordeaux Missing: $25K reward in case of Fort Bragg soldier missing almost a year

Kelli Bordeaux Missing: Forensic Tests To Determine Identity Of Remains Found Near Fort Bragg
Huffington Post
Posted: 11/21/2012

The discovery of remains on Tuesday near Fort Bragg raised speculation that they might belong to a soldier who vanished seven months ago, WTVD reported.

But before investigators determine if they've at last found Kelli Bordeaux, they must determine if the remains are human or animal.

An Army forensic team is examining the remains at a laboratory, according to WNCT

Bordeaux, a 23-year-old Army medic at the Fayetteville, N.C. base, vanished after a night of partying on April 14. When she failed to report for duty two days later, she was reported missing. Her husband, a civilian, was out of town the night she disappeared.
read more here

Fort Bragg Soldier Kelli Bordeaux still missing

Sergeant Robert Larson back home and safe

Missing soldier returns home safely
by Shyann Malone
Posted: 10.22.2012

St. Matthews, S.C.(WACH)--A missing Ft. Jackson soldier returns home safely after vanishing from his home more than a week ago.
Sergeant Robert Larson went missing from his home in St. Matthews Saturday October 20th.
His wife Pamela said that he was working on his Jeep and when she went to check on him he wasn't there.
After a week long search that extended into the Midwest Region Larson was found in the woods near his hometown in Minnesota.
The Larson family is glad to have Robert back but things are far from being back to normal.
read more here

Wife turns to Facebook to find missing soldier-husband

Social media help wife find missing soldier
Army Times
By Meghann Myers
Staff writer
Posted : Monday Oct 22, 2012

During the eight days after her husband went missing Oct. 6 from their home near Fort Jackson, S.C., Pamela Larson updated her “Help Find Sgt. Robert Larson” Facebook page daily.

She chronicled every meeting with law enforcement and her husband’s chain of command, while thousands of followers sent in tips and expressed their support for her husband, who suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury. Pamela knew something of what he was going through because she, too, was a wounded warrior.

“I can’t tell you what all the prayers mean to me and the boys,” she wrote Oct. 8. “The police have been updating us regularly. Unfortunately, they are updating us that they have made no progress.”

On Oct. 15, the 26-year-old soldier with Training and Doctrine Command’s Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 165th Infantry Brigade, returned home. His cousin had found him camping out in a forest near his Minnesota hometown, about 1,200 miles and a 22-hour drive from the last place his wife had seen him.

The “Help Find Sgt. Robert Larson” Facebook page had collected 11,831 “likes” as of press time, with some posts garnering more than 5,000 “likes” and upward of 800 comments. Though the tips sent in didn’t pan out, Pamela said she took comfort in knowing how many people are on her side, and she’ll keep the page going to encourage her husband through his recovery.
read more here

Search for missing soldier with TBI continues

Fort Jackson missing soldier suffers from TBI and PTSD

Military search for Sgt. Rob Larson ends

Military search for Sgt. Rob Larson ends

Military Search For Fort Jackson Soldier Halted
Sgt. Rob Larson, a Purple Heart recipient, served in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. He has since gone missing from his stationed Fort Jackson, S.C., base.

A Fort Jackson soldier missing for more than a week sufffered from a traumatic brain injury sustained in Iraq in 2005 and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, according to a release from the team of family and friends searching for him.

He may not have his medicine for his brain injury and could be disoriented, the release stated.

Sgt. Rob Larson lives Calhoun County but was stationed in Fort Jackson. On Oct. 7, he was spotted in Gary, IN. After being spotted in another jurisdiction, the Calhoun County officials halted the search, though they are still collecting tips and remain the primary point of contact for all information coming in on the search.

Also, military officials told Pamela Larson, Rob Larson's wife, that they would not search for soldiers who are absent without leave (AWOL.), the release stated.
read more here

Fort Jackson, Missing Soldier Suffers from PTSD, Long Untreated TBI

Fort Jackson, Missing Soldier Suffers from PTSD, Long Untreated TBI

Wife: Missing Soldier Suffers from PTSD, Long Untreated Brain Injury
Sgt. Rob Larson was seen on a surveillance tape buying gas in Gary, IN.
By Jessie Gable

A Fort Jackson soldier who has been missing since Saturday may be headed to his parents' home in Minnesota, The State reports.

Sgt. Rob Larson, 26, served two tours in Iraq and one in Afghanistan. He had a traumatic brain injury in 2006 and has been undergoing treatments since 2009, The State reports.

Larson was last seen in Columbia at the Forest Acres Walmart buying camping equipment.

A Facebook page operated by Larson's wife Pamela stated that Larson is probably not wearing military issued clothing. If he does not return in 30 days, Larson could be declared AWOL.
read more here

Search for missing soldier with TBi continues

Search for missing soldier with TBI continues

UPDATE Sgt. Larson back home safe

Search continues for soldier nearly killed in Iraq now missing from home
Posted: Oct 09, 2012
By Jason Old
By Susan-Elizabeth Littlefield
CALHOUN COUNTY, SC (WIS)

A South Carolina soldier who suffered a traumatic brain injury when the vehicle he was riding in hit an IED in Iraq during a deployment eight years ago has gone missing from his Midlands home.

Sgt. Robert Larson, 26, hasn't been seen since approximately 7 p.m. on Saturday. Pamela Larson says her husband left their Sandy Run home in his Jeep after working all day on the brakes.

She believes he may have left to blow off some steam after she was "nagging" him to help carry some boxes into the house.

He hasn't answered his phone or sent Pamela any text messages since he left. She says this long period of being out of contact is abnormal for her husband.

Larson was driving a Black 2009 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited with Smittybilt XRC front and rear fenders, and Smittybilt stickers on windshield and rear windows. It has South Carolina Purple Heart license plates. The tag number is PH5752.

Pamela is worried her husband may have gone off-road driving after dark on Saturday. "He thinks because he has a 4-wheel drive vehicle that he knows how to drive it in the woods," said Larson.

Wednesday the Calhoun County Sheriff's Department continued to search the dense woods around the home.
read more here

Army sergeant still missing after jumping off Carnival cruise ship

UPDATE September 2, 2012
Army investigating Fort Stewart soldier missing at sea

Army sergeant still missing after jumping off Carnival cruise ship
By Arelis R. Hernández and Susan Jacobson
Orlando Sentinel
August 29, 2012

Military officials today identified the man who jumped off a Carnival cruise ship Tuesday as an Army soldier stationed in Fort Stewart, Ga.

Sgt. Ronald Kemp, 31, is assigned to the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team of the 3rd Infantry Division, according to Fort Stewart spokesman Kevin Larson.

The U.S. Coast Guard and Air Force reservists are still searching for Kemp, who was last seen by Carnival security jumping off the top deck of the ship Tuesday into the waters off the Volusia County coast.

Larson said Kemp's family was notified immediately and Army officials are providing support.

Officials wouldn't speculate on the possible reasons Kemp jumped.

Kemp is an Iraq war veteran, having served two tours overseas. He was assigned to the Fort Stewart-Hunter Army Airfield in September 2010 and has been stateside ever since, officials said.

A security guard said he saw Kemp leap from the 10th deck of the into the water 87 feet below at about 2 a.m. Tuesday, the Coast Guard said.
read more here

Parents believe remains found in Montana are Noah Pippin

UPDATE August 27, 2012

Missing Marine Noah Pippin likely died of exposure

Remains found in Montana wilderness area where Iraq war veteran was last seen in 2010
By Associated Press

About a month before he was last seen, Noah Pippin quit his job with the Los Angeles Police Department. He later went to visit his family in Michigan and told them he was heading back west to serve with the California National Guard.

KALISPELL, Mont. — Human remains have been found in the Bob Marshall Wilderness in northwest Montana, where a team has been searching for an Iraq war veteran who disappeared two years ago, a sheriff said Friday.

The parents of Noah Pippin released a statement Friday saying Lewis and Clark County sheriff’s and coroner’s officials told them remains had been found in the Burnt Creek area.

Authorities haven’t confirmed the identity of the remains yet, but Mike and Rosalie Pippin said there is a strong likelihood they belong to their son.

A search party of border agents, search and rescue officials, a sheriff’s deputy and volunteers found the remains and planned to bring them back to the state crime lab in Missoula. Coroner M.E. “Mickey” Nelson said it could be several days or even weeks before the body can be positively identified.

“There was enough circumstantial evidence that I felt comfortable, and I informed the family, that their loved one has been located, based on preliminary indicators and circumstantial things we found,” Nelson said. He declined to elaborate on what was found.
read more here

No one is giving up on finding Pfc. Kelli Bordeaux

Volunteers resume search for missing soldier
The Associated Press
Army Times
Posted : Saturday Aug 11, 2012

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — Volunteers are again planning to search for a missing Fort Bragg soldier.

The Fayetteville Observer reports that the volunteers are scheduled to gather Saturday to look for Pfc. Kelli Bordeaux.

The 23-year-old was last seen April 14 at a bar where she had gone the night before to sing karaoke.
read more here

New search begins for Pfc. Kelli Bordeaux

New search launched for missing Fort Bragg soldier
June 16, 2012
by Joe Borlik

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — Volunteers are mounting another search for a Fort Bragg soldier missing for two months.

Teams are meeting in Fayetteville on Saturday to search for Pfc. Kelli Bordeaux. The 23-year-old was last seen April 14 at a bar where she had gone the night before to sing karaoke.
read more here