Man sought for questioning in student's disappearance
JO MORELANDStaff Writer
LOS ANGELES ---- There is a new lead in the disappearance of a UCLA student from Sabre Springs, officials said.
A composite sketch of a potential witness has been developed in the search to find 19-year-old Michael William Negrete, last seen early Dec. 10 in his Dykstra Hall dorm on campus, authorities said Tuesday.
 Artist's Sketch |
| Police are searching for this man in connection with the disappearance of Michael Negrete. |
"The person depicted in that sketch was seen in the dorm that night," said Los Angeles County sheriff's Detective Sgt. Joe Purcell. "We just really need to identify this man and talk to him. That's the best thing we have going."
It isn't known what the man was doing in the dorm that night, Purcell said. He said information about the potential witness was developed by sheriff's detectives, who got the case about mid-May from the UCLA campus police.
The man being sought is described as white, about 35 years old and 5 feet 8 inches tall with a heavy build. Purcell said he wore a shiny gray jacket with a turquoise design.
Negrete was 18 when he logged off his computer in the dorm shortly before 4 a.m. Dec. 10. He had been playing a computer game with a friend, Purcell said. He said when Negrete's roommate awakened the next morning, the teen was gone.
Negrete's family in Sabre Springs has provided a $100,000 reward for anyone who provides information that directly leads to finding him.
"We think finally something might happen (to help find him)," said Mary Negrete, the missing student's mother.
Tips from the reward offer haven't led anywhere, she said, but the family has to take all calls, "because you never know which one will be the one you want."
"The hardest thing is Michael's lost to us one way or another, because he's not here," she said. "Just the fact that he's lost is the hardest thing, compounded by the fact that we don't know why he's lost to us or where to go with this feeling."
Anyone with information about the potential witness can call Purcell at (323) 890-5500.
Contact Jo Moreland at (760) 901-4085 or e-mail moreland@nctimes.com.
Posted by jameson on Jul-29-02 at 09:51 AM (EST)
February 7th 2002, on the John and Ken show, a quote by Damon Van Dam
"I was in Los Angeles in 1999 when Michael Negrete disappeared, I am a friend of Miguel Negrete, Michael’s father, and I worked with the men when it happened"
