ST. LUCIE COUNTY, Fla (CBS12) — Eight months after a Port St. Lucie father vanished, his family says they are still searching for answers and living with the painful uncertainty of not knowing where he is.
“I’m stuck in this cycle of not knowing where he is,” said Aubrey Finley, whose brother, Robert La Polla, disappeared Jan. 8 after being released from a hospital in Fort Pierce.
The 47-year-old father has not been seen or heard from since, according to his family. Detectives have no confirmed sightings, and the case remains unsolved.
Finley said La Polla struggled with depression following the deaths of their parents, but the siblings remained close and talked often.
“Everything kind of fell apart,” she said. “But we still managed to communicate a lot. We were still there for each other all the time.”
The St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office continues investigating the disappearance of Robert La Polla, 47, who was last seen Jan. 8. Family members say they are still searching for answers eight months later. (Aubrey Finley)
Because of that bond, Finley said her brother’s disappearance is completely out of character.
In the months since he vanished, family members and friends have organized search efforts across Fort Pierce, checking wooded areas and busy corridors near HCA Florida Lawnwood Hospital.
“We’ve gone through woods, under bridges, talking to people everywhere in Fort Pierce, trying to find anything that brings us to him,” Finley said.
The St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office continues investigating the disappearance of Robert La Polla, 47, who was last seen Jan. 8. Family members say they are still searching for answers eight months later. (Aubrey Finley)
The search has also taken an emotional toll on La Polla’s young daughter, who continues to wait for her father to come home.
“I miss him. She misses him,” Finley said. “He’s got a family that love him.”
Aubrey Finley speaks about her brother, Robert La Polla, who has been missing since January. The St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office continues to investigate his disappearance. (WPEC)
The St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office (SLCSO) said La Polla has been entered into a national missing persons database. Investigators have also collected DNA from family members in case it is needed for identification and continue to follow up on leads.
Anyone with information about La Polla’s whereabouts is asked to contact Detective Cpl. Drawdy at 772-462-3230 or call 911.