A Texas grandmother is putting out a desperate plea for help to find her 18-year-old grandson with autism, who disappeared over the weekend in Miami.
Jonathan Andrew Torres was last seen Saturday in the area of the Costa Norte Boutique Hotel at 7130 Harding Avenue in Miami Beach, according to Miami Beach Police.
Michelle Lowe-Christensen described her grandson as high-functioning, outgoing and fascinated with Miami.
“He’s enamored with Miami, he wants to be here, and he wants to do all the fun things he sees TikTokers do,” she said.
Lowe-Christensen said Torres left work in Austin, Texas, last Wednesday, and his family knew something was wrong when he didn’t return home at his usual time.
Family members later discovered he had gone to the airport and boarded a flight to Miami.
Torres has stopped answering calls and texts, his family said, believing he knew they would try to stop him from making the trip.
According to his family, Torres arrived in South Florida early Thursday morning. Surveillance video showed him outside the Costa Norte Boutique Hotel, where he was staying.
“He got two nights there and he never showed back up and all his stuff is there,” his grandmother said.
What began as a plea for help on TikTok has since turned into a full-scale search across Miami.
His grandmother said all contact stopped Saturday, and there has been no activity in his bank accounts. His phone last pinged Saturday in downtown Miami.
“If you see Jon, you’re not going to think he’s autistic,” Lowe-Christensen said. “He’s very intelligent, but he doesn’t see fear. He doesn’t see that people are bad.”
Torres is described as 5-foot-6, 130-140 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes.
Anyone with information is asked to call Miami Beach Police at 305-673-7900.