CA CA - John Beck, 73, Alameda, 9 Feb 2016 #1

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los2188

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John Nelson Beck
beck_1455199599420_829830_ver1.0.PNG


Search for missing Alameda man

Alameda, California -
There is still no sign of an Alameda resident who has been missing since Tuesday morning.

John Beck, 73, was dropped off at 9 a.m. in the 1300 block of Clay Street in Oakland, at the Oakland City Center.

12670303_582771215222266_4293036535926016_n.jpg


https://www.facebook.com/findjohnbeck/

http://www.ktvu.com/news/88802144-story​
 
I grew up in Alameda, so this thread jumped out at me. Here is the FB page set up for John.

https://www.facebook.com/findjohnbeck

This is the street view for the 1300 block of Clay St in Oakland where he was dropped off. It's not really a bad neighborhood, although it is downtown Oakland.

https://www.google.com/maps/place//...ata=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1s7-_mWyeo4lN7CwSaAcGdSw!2e0

His cell phone has been turned off and he has not used his credit cards.

http://sfist.com/2016/02/10/have_you_seen_this_missing_person.php

This is very strange. How heartbreaking for his family! I hope for a good outcome.
 
There is mention on the FB page that he may have been seen in the vicinity of Sutro Baths and Baker Beach area of San Francisco recently. That's quite a distance from downtown Oakland if he wasn't driving a car (he was dropped off at the appointment), although public transportation (BART and bus) is certainly possible.
They are planning to search in SF today, so they must feel it is a credible lead.

https://www.facebook.com/findjohnbe...2750541891000/582757208557000/?type=3&theater

https://www.google.com/maps/place/S...2!3m1!1s0x808587b56c4f30b3:0xe01af746c44bb97e
 
Hello! My name is Joy and I'm a lifelong family friends and one of the administrators of the "Missing: John Beck" facebook page--I'm here at the request of the family and I will write to the moderators and get verified as soon as I'm done with this post. (If you look at the moderators you'll see me listed there.)

Here are the updates:
  • John's phone is either off or out of batteries. The police were not able to find any useful recent location data from the phone company.
  • John has not withdrawn money from his accounts or used his credit cards.
  • The police obtained surveillance footage from the Oakland Civic Center 12th Street BART station and identified John getting on an OUTBOUND train.
  • Earlier that morning, John had googled public transportation directions to Sutro Baths and Baker Beach in San Francisco.
  • Based on those directions, we *believe* that John likely exited BART at the Powell st station, however we have been unable to obtain surveillance footage from that station.

    We would dearly appreciate any assistance you could provide. John is a good, kind, funny man and we are very afraid.

    <modsnip>
 
Welcome Joy. I'm so sorry you are here under these circumstances. We will certainly do what we can to help and give support during this difficult time. I'm going to bombard you with questions, so my apologies in advance. :)

With the new information you have provided, it seems to me that John's intent was to get on BART and go to SF, rather than go to his appointment. Was the appointment something he would have wanted to miss? Could the appointment have been simply for the purpose of getting dropped off in an easy location to catch BART, rather than have to make his way by bus from Alameda or leave a car near the BART station?

Is the SF sighting reliable? How did you hear about it? Are Sutro Baths and Baker Beach of particular significance to John? Could he have been meeting someone there?

I assume he might have taken a bus out Geary? Is there any surveillance of him walking to catch a bus or on a bus? You might want to put up posters along this route at bus stops. Would he be capable of walking between Sutro Baths and Baker Beach?

John's expression in the poster photo seems anxious or sad to me. Is there any possibility of depression or very early dementia? Depression is rather common among seniors. Early dementia can easily be missed by family and friends (been there, done that with my late Mom). Sorry to get personal, but it's important to cover all bases.

Do keep up the good work keeping the media involved as much as possible. Often family members are camera shy, but a personal plea from his wife or daughter is more memorable than a generic story. The FB page is great. Twitter is helpful too.

Please keep us posted. Hugs!
 
Welcome JoyM, thanks for the info. Hopefully John will be found soon.
 
I am literally at 1515 clay street right now.


Lilibet said:
I grew up in Alameda, so this thread jumped out at me. Here is the FB page set up for John.

https://www.facebook.com/findjohnbeck

This is the street view for the 1300 block of Clay St in Oakland where he was dropped off. It's not really a bad neighborhood, although it is downtown Oakland.

https://www.google.com/maps/place//...ata=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1s7-_mWyeo4lN7CwSaAcGdSw!2e0

His cell phone has been turned off and he has not used his credit cards.

http://sfist.com/2016/02/10/have_you_seen_this_missing_person.php

This is very strange. How heartbreaking for his family! I hope for a good outcome.
Click to expand...
 
Lilibet said:
There is mention on the FB page that he may have been seen in the vicinity of Sutro Baths and Baker Beach area of San Francisco recently. That's quite a distance from downtown Oakland if he wasn't driving a car (he was dropped off at the appointment), although public transportation (BART and bus) is certainly possible.
They are planning to search in SF today, so they must feel it is a credible lead.

https://www.facebook.com/findjohnbe...2750541891000/582757208557000/?type=3&theater

https://www.google.com/maps/place/S...2!3m1!1s0x808587b56c4f30b3:0xe01af746c44bb97e
Click to expand...

Here's the updated flyer via the Facebook link Lillibet posted above:

7469392aeab53ef8f2996fb0415a3918.jpg



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Here is a link to a PDF poster to print. https://www.facebook.com/findjohnbe...2750541891000/583085405190847/?type=3&theater

Updating a little for those without FB.
https://www.facebook.com/findjohnbeck/?fref=photo

John was seen on surveillance getting on the 9:06 a.m. Millbrae (Peninsula) bound BART train in Oakland.

They have not been able to get video from his assumed exit at Powell St in SF yet. They are trying to make direct contact with someone at BART, as the Alameda detective is on vacation until Monday. Friends have come up with several names.

Police were not able to come up with useful or surprising call or location info from the phone company. His phone is either off or uncharged.

John is very active and is able to walk for long periods despite (or probably because of IMO :) ) a recent double hip replacement.

There has been no activity on his credit cards or bank account.

Here is a new photo posted with the hat he may have been wearing. I cropped it to remove the other person in the photo.


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Just throwing more ideas and questions your way Joy. Please don't feel you need to answer questions posed here if they are too personal. They are just things to think about.

Have posters been taken to the area he may have gone out by the beach and along the bus route and shown around? How did the SF search go today? I notice there will be a Peninsula search tomorrow.

Have SF police been alerted to be on the lookout?

Have his friends/colleagues in other parts of CA been contacted?

Is there a chance the Sutro Baths search was a red herring?

Did John receive any disturbing news lately or an upsetting medical diagnosis?

Someone just posted on FB that they are almost positive they had a nice conversation with John at Starbucks in Novato (Marin county) on Thursday morning. Is that a possibility?

If family or friends have school, work, club or church affiliations, be sure to call on them for searching help.

If there is a trusted friend with really strong PR experience who would be willing to handle publicity, that can help a lot.

I followed a case last summer of a married man in his thirties who disappeared for several weeks without his glasses or insulin and was found across the country. It looked really bad, but ended well. So hang in there!
 
Thank you and forgive my delayed response--I have been busy with the search. Please keep the questions coming--I don't mind answering anything at all.

With the new information you have provided, it seems to me that John's intent was to get on BART and go to SF, rather than go to his appointment. Was the appointment something he would have wanted to miss? Could the appointment have been simply for the purpose of getting dropped off in an easy location to catch BART, rather than have to make his way by bus from Alameda or leave a car near the BART station?
Click to expand...
He was going to a court appointment for a stressful, financially draining court case he&#8217;s been fighting for years. It was certainly not a pleasant appointment. We have confirmed that the appointment was real, that it was indeed at the Oakland court building (right by where he was dropped off) and that he did not show up for it.

Is the SF sighting reliable? How did you hear about it? Are Sutro Baths and Baker Beach of particular significance to John? Could he have been meeting someone there?
Click to expand...
We do not think he was meeting anyone there. Anything is possible, but it seems out of character, and there's no indication of this in his email or phone records. We do not know of any particular significance to John, but it has not escaped our attention that both are near the golden gate bridge. We comfort ourselves however that, given the increased security and attention to suicide on the bridge, it is unlikely (but not impossible) that any attempt at self-harm would have gone unnoticed. We are however trying to obtain surveillance video of the bridge to put our minds at ease.

There was no actual sighting in SF. Early in the morning of 2/9/16, John googled public transit directions to Sutro Baths and Baker Beach in San Francisco. The directions instructed him to exit BART at the Powell Street Station. Alameda PD obtained surveillance video from the 12th St/ City Center BART Station. John was identified boarding the 9:06 AM Milbrae-bound Train--indicating he was bound for SF.

I assume he might have taken a bus out Geary? Is there any surveillance of him walking to catch a bus or on a bus? You might want to put up posters along this route at bus stops. Would he be capable of walking between Sutro Baths and Baker Beach?
Click to expand...

This is very smart and a fantastic idea and after I read this we dispatched a team of volunteers to do just that. We do think he would be capable of walking between the two points.

John's expression in the poster photo seems anxious or sad to me. Is there any possibility of depression or very early dementia? Depression is rather common among seniors. Early dementia can easily be missed by family and friends (been there, done that with my late Mom). Sorry to get personal, but it's important to cover all bases.
Click to expand...

If you had asked me a week ago, I would have said he's understandably stressed but not depressed. He leads an active life, he seemed to be in good spirits, he volunteers at the local elementary school. We haven't seen any signs of dementia. All of that said, the human mind is infinitely complex and mysterious. It's always a mistake to assume we understand more than we do about the inner life of anyone around us.

Please let me know if you have any more questions.
OTHER UPDATES/PROJECTS WE COULD USE HELP WITH:
*We are trying to get surveillance footage from the Powell, Montgomery and Embarcadero bart stations and have not had much success yet. Does anyone have a contact with BART police? Please comment here or email before reaching out unless they're a very close friend--we don't want to beseige them with requests and get them angry at us, and we're trying a few different tactics. But our official path is slowed as the APD detective assigned to the case is on vacation through Monday. (I'm sure the vacation is well deserved but the timing is not ideal for our search.)
*Here is a spreadsheet of bart stops and bus connections and times John might have been there: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1UuxE8FLfPSmzvHVyJMg0NPNklYfxmzUkLDpB2oO2xk8/edit?usp=sharing
We could use help identifying public facing surveillance cameras near these stops and bus lines. We will send teams out to ask the camera owners to show us footage from the relevant times.

We are also regularly updating the facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/findjohnbeck/?fref=photo

I think that's it! Please don't hesitate to ask questions. I can't express how much we appreciate it!!
 
Lilibet said:
Just throwing more ideas and questions your way Joy. Please don't feel you need to answer questions posed here if they are too personal. They are just things to think about.
Click to expand...

Lilibet said:
Have posters been taken to the area he may have gone out by the beach and along the bus route and shown around? How did the SF search go today? I notice there will be a Peninsula search tomorrow.
Click to expand...
Yes, this is a great idea--we ran with it and made it a big part of today's work. We covered a ton of ground. No new breakthrough, but maybe something will come from one of the flyers down the road.

We are searching the Peninsula partially because it's ground we haven't yet covered, but also because we got a tip that may or not be accurate. Someone saw a man matching John's description near the Larkspur Ferry building 1 PM yesterday. She described his clothing and included a detail that is accurate but wasn't in the description, so it seemed possible. However the security guard at the Ferry Building reviewed the surveillance footage (not clear if it's from the ferry building or the ferries themselves) carefully and didn't see anyone who looked like John. She had several photos and she notified us about people who were in the neighborhood, so we trust her.

Lilibet said:
Have SF police been alerted to be on the lookout?
Click to expand...

Yes! And we're checking in with them daily.

Lilibet said:
Have his friends/colleagues in other parts of CA been contacted?
Click to expand...

We've reached out to his friends as a group but we should do another individual push!


Lilibet said:
Is there a chance the Sutro Baths search was a red herring?
Click to expand...
Yes, absolutely. We're keeping our radar up all over the bay area.


Lilibet said:
Did John receive any disturbing news lately or an upsetting medical diagnosis?
Click to expand...
Not that we know of, but this legal issue was an ongoing stress.


Lilibet said:
Someone just posted on FB that they are almost positive they had a nice conversation with John at Starbucks in Novato (Marin county) on Thursday morning. Is that a possibility?
Click to expand...
We're not ruling out the possiblity, but it seems unlikely. The man the woman spoke with talked about his mother dying at a young age, but John's mother died at the age of 94.


Lilibet said:
If family or friends have school, work, club or church affiliations, be sure to call on them for searching help.

If there is a trusted friend with really strong PR experience who would be willing to handle publicity, that can help a lot.

I followed a case last summer of a married man in his thirties who disappeared for several weeks without his glasses or insulin and was found across the country. It looked really bad, but ended well. So hang in there!
Click to expand...
Thank you so much for all of this! We have enlisted the help of a friend with PR experience. It has been invaluable!!
 
Thank you! We are encouraged by the help and support we're receiving! We are very scared but the tips, advice, and words of encouragement coming our way are helping to sustain us!
 
Thank you!! We hope so too. This forum makes that more likely--thank you all for your concern and assistance.
 
Thanks for your reply, Joy. I've brought your request for help with surveillance footage to a separate post so it doesn't get lost in the shuffle. Someone might have some expertise in this area.

OTHER UPDATES/PROJECTS WE COULD USE HELP WITH:
*We are trying to get surveillance footage from the Powell, Montgomery and Embarcadero bart stations and have not had much success yet. Does anyone have a contact with BART police? Please comment here or email before reaching out unless they're a very close friend--we don't want to beseige them with requests and get them angry at us, and we're trying a few different tactics. But our official path is slowed as the APD detective assigned to the case is on vacation through Monday. (I'm sure the vacation is well deserved but the timing is not ideal for our search.)

*Here is a spreadsheet of bart stops and bus connections and times John might have been there:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1UuxE8FLfPSmzvHVyJMg0NPNklYfxmzUkLDpB2oO2xk8/htmlview

We could use help identifying public facing surveillance cameras near these stops and bus lines. We will send teams out to ask the camera owners to show us footage from the relevant times.

BBM
 
Keeping John in my prayers tonight.

The efforts here are absolutely amazing.
:yourock: JoyM and Lillibet!!!

:praying:
:candle:


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
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