Orlando family desperate to find son missing in South Florida for nearly a month
MIAMI - Miami Police increased the urgency to find a man missing for nearly a month. A statewide alert was issued Wednesday to help find 36-year-old Sean Michel Hinz.
Hinz's parents tell us they last heard from him on October 7th. They fear the worst, saying he suffers from depression. And he's out on bond, awaiting trial for aggravated battery assault for an incident back in May.
Dad showed CBS News Miami the last texts he received from his son.
"Think it's more the play calling than Van Dykes fault," said Michael Hinz, Sean's dad.
On October 7th at 9:52 pm, Michael Hinz and his son were having a football chat about Miami losing to Georgia Tech. He says Sean was out with friends watching the game that night.
Days went by before Michael texted Sean, "What's going on?"
"He will always answer the phone or call me back within 10 minutes, 15 minutes," said Hinz.
Sean's dad and mom live in Orlando. She happened to be in Miami for work when communication stopped.
"I knew something was up then," said Hinz.
A missing person's report was filed on October 11th. The next day, Miami Police issued an endangered adult missing person's flier on social media and local news.
"We have no clues," said Hinz. "We're down here all the time. Trying to come up with leads."
Michael tells us the only lead was this pedestrian camera located at the intersection of 8th Street and Biscayne Boulevard. He says it showed Sean walking home at around 4:30 in the morning on the 8th.
Miami Police say they looked at other cameras in the area. The family did the same, telling us there were no signs of Sean appearing anywhere.
"It's crazy that somebody can just disappear in a three-block span," said Hinz. "It would have taken him four minutes to walk from Eighth Street to 395. I know that because I walked it."
What confuses the family even more is all his personal belongings remain in his condo.
"He didn't take any of it," said Hinz. "No clothes. No cash. Nothing. His phone hasn't been used since the 7th or 8th. His credit cards haven't been used since that date."
The family tells me they went back to the police station in Miami in person ten days after reporting Sean's disappearance.
"I didn't get a whole lot of clear answers," added Hinz.
On Halloween, 23 days after the family last heard from Sean, a judge presiding over his case revoked his bond. The State Attorney's office tells CBS News Miami that's standard procedure if the person fails to appear in court or goes missing while out on bond.
"They're not treating him as a missing person, but as somebody who is potentially hiding or had maybe another mental breakdown," added Hinz.
After Sean's arrest in May for the alleged incident, the police report said they think Hinz suffers from mental health issues. His dad was trying to get Sean help.
"We want to get him back because we want to get him back and, you know, healthy," said Hinz. "I want to get my son back. So, so yeah, it's been tough on everybody."
Michael wishes the police would have acted faster, sooner, to find their missing son.
"I wish they took it seriously, period," said Hinz.
A day after we asked police about Hinz's disappearance and his bond being revoked, Miami PD issued a statewide Purple Alert. Upgrading the urgency to find missing adults suffering from a mental or cognitive disability.
CBS News Miami has emailed Miami Police a series of questions and asked to speak with police about the case and the family's concerns. They declined to speak on camera but wrote back saying, "this is an ongoing investigation and we do not suspect foul play at this time."
