A car registered to a 76-year-old man reported missing two weeks ago from Oceanside was found abandoned Wednesday in the desert in Lake Los Angeles.
A sheriff’s deputy found the vehicle in the area of 155th Street East, according to a new release from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
The car was locked and stuck in soft sand in an area not visible from the road, the release stated.
A check of the license plate revealed the black, 2015 Honda Civic belonged to Nikolaos Christidis, a critical missing person last seen on July 22 in Oceanside, according to the release.
An air and ground search of the area turned up no sign of Christidis, who family members say suffers from dementia, the release stated.
On July 22, Christidis’ daughter awoke from an afternoon nap to find a note from her father stating he would be home late, according to police in Oceanside.
The next morning, Christidis ex-wife called him, and he told her he was in Escondido and would be returning home in 15 minutes, a news release from the Oceanside Police Department stated.
Several hours later, Christidis’ daughter called him, and he stated he was in the desert and would be home in an hour, police said.
A second call to Christidis’ cellphone from his daughter later that afternoon went straight to voicemail, according to Oceanside police.
Nikolaos Christidis is described as a white man of Greek descent, 5 foot 7 inches tall, 175 pounds with gray hair and brown eyes.
Anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of Nikolaos Christidis was asked to contact their local law enforcement agency and Oceanside Police Department Lieutenant Aaron Doyle at 760-435-4694 or Detective Karla Williams at 760 435-4771.