'Kenny, just call me': Missing US student Kenny DeLand's mom pleads for help as FBI joins search in France
GRENOBLE, FRANCE: For almost two weeks, an American student has been reported missing in France. His distraught family pleaded to help them find their son and added to the search efforts of the police in France, the FBI joins the investigation.
Kenny DeLand Jr, 22, a senior at St John Fisher University in New York, went missing while he was on a study abroad program in southeastern France. He was due to return home the next week for the holidays but two weeks ago in late November, his mother received a distressing call from a college liaison worker, informing her that he had gone missing. The college filed a missing person report after he failed to show up for more than 24 hours.
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"I say, Kenny, Kenny just call me. Just pick up the phone, you can talk to me about anything," said Deland's mother Carol Laws in an interview of their family with 'Good Morning America' sharing their request to help them find their son. She said she still messages him every day. His parents find his not contacting as out of character, reports the Daily Mail.
"If anybody has a way to help us and find him, help us. With the officials, please help us," Laws said while speaking to the TV program. "He loves to travel so this trip has been something that he's really looked forward to," added Deland's father Kenneth Deland.
According to the Daily Mail, Deland is studying at the University of Grenoble Alpes and was staying with a host family. He told his family that he was taking a train to Valence in southeastern France in his last message. Since the message on WhatsApp on November 27, the family has lost contact with him, and for the last time, on November 30, Deland's phone was believed to have 'pinged'.
The FBI has joined the search efforts of the police in France. However, due to privacy laws, the French police will not be able to release information regarding the findings from the investigation as Deland is an adult.
"I've helped in cases where loved ones have had a missing person overseas and, if they had means, I've told them to fly there and to basically work with the police eyeball to eyeball.", said former special FBI agent, Brad Garrett.
MEAWW previously reported that the 22-year-old who is identified as 6 ft tall and 190 lbs was tracked to a sports store in Montelimar on December 3 at 9 am where he spent $9. Garrett said that "it would be extremely important to understand who he has talked to, maybe in his age group in France or maybe he's talked to people back here in the United States on the phone". Ken wore a scarf, a red jacket, a gray beanie, blue pants, a black backpack, and sneakers on the day he was last spotted.
To raise awareness about his missing status, the family has currently launched a website 'Find Ken DeLand'. On the website, the family wrote: "We are extremely worried and want him to return home safe. We fear the worst and want him to be located."