Missing
Michael Darnell Bell Jr.
Bell, approximately 2011
Date and time person was reported missing : 09/17/2011
Missing location (approx) :
Mendota, California
Missing classification : Endangered Missing
Gender : Male
Ethnicity :
Black
DOB : 01/26/1986 (35)
Age at the time of disappearance: 25 years old
Height / Weight : 6'0, 190 pounds
Description, clothing, jewerly and more : A white shirt, black pants, white sneakers and a dark-colored backpack.
Distinguishing characteristics, birthmarks, tattoos
: African-American male. Black hair, brown eyes. Bell has the following tattoos: his nickname "Mike" on one arm, his last name "Bell" on the other arm along with a list of his father's accomplishments, and the names "Ashawnta" and "Shekinah" on the tops of his wrists. His ears are pierced.
Information on the case from local sources, may or may not be correct : Bell was last seen in Mendota, California on September 17, 2011. At approximately 3:15 a.m., the car he was driving, his mother's blue 2002 Toyota Camry, ran out of gas on Interstate 5 near Russell Avenue, about four hours north of Los Angeles. A California Highway Patrol (CHP) officer dropped him off at a Chevron gas station in the 46300 block of west Panoche Road near Mendota. He has never been heard from again.
Bell was supposed to take a trip to his hometown of Cleveland, Ohio, but he never arrived and didn't answer his family's repeated calls to his cellular phone. His loved ones checked his apartment in Los Angeles and found his phone and personal belongings there, and food in the microwave.
Bell and his mother's car were missing. His relatives reported him missing on September 22. The police found located his car abandoned where he'd left it when it ran out of gas.
Investigators aren't sure where Bell was going when he ran out of gas on the interstate, but he told the CHP officer he'd left a religious service he didn't like. He had gotten interested in the Church of Scientology and was studying it and reading about it, but as far as his family knows he wasn't attending any church regularly.
His loved ones stated it was uncharacteristic of him to leave without warning, and they describe him as good-hearted, giving and outgoing. He was starting a non-profit organization to establish group homes for homeless children, and planned to meet with others on the board of the organization during his upcoming visit to Cleveland.
Bell attended Michigan State University, where he played football. He left behind a young son. Both Fresno County and Los Angeles police are investigating Bell's case; it remains unsolved the circumstances of his disappearance are unclear.
Other information and links : ncy
Los Angeles Police Department
213-996-1800
Fresno County Sheriff's Office
559-488-3111
September 2021 updates and sources
California Attorney General's Office
KFSN
KMPH Fox 26
The Fresno Bee
KTLA
A missing person is a person who has disappeared and whose status as alive or dead cannot be confirmed as their location and condition are not known. A person may go missing through a voluntary disappearance, or else due to an accident, crime, death in a location where they cannot be found (such as at sea), or many other reasons. In most parts of the world, a missing person will usually be found quickly. While criminal abductions are some of the most widely reported missing person cases, these account for only 2�5% of missing children in Europe.
By contrast, some missing person cases remain unresolved for many years. Laws related to these cases are often complex since, in many jurisdictions, relatives and third parties may not deal with a person's assets until their death is considered proven by law and a formal death certificate issued. The situation, uncertainties, and lack of closure or a funeral resulting when a person goes missing may be extremely painful with long-lasting effects on family and friends.
Several organizations seek to connect, share best practices, and disseminate information and imAge at the time of disappearance: s of missing children to improve the effectiveness of missing children investigations, including the International Commission on Missing Persons, the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children (ICMEC), as well as national organizations, including the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in the US, Missing People in the UK, Child Focus in Belgium, and The Smile of the Child in Greece.
October 12, 2004. September 16, 2017; picture added, name, Distinguishing characteristics, birthmarks, tattoos
: and Information on the case from local sources, may or may not be correct : updated.
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