Petro Kuqo, 87, who is missing, moved to Largo with his wife, daughter, and nephew almost two months ago from Greece to join other immediate family.
LARGO, Fla. — We have new photos that may help in the search for an 87-year-old man with dementia who’s been missing for more than a week. Police and his family have not given up hope that Petro Kuqo could still be alive somewhere.
He recently moved to Largo from Greece. On the morning of Dec. 12, he wandered away from his apartment at The Pointe at Clearwater just off U.S. 19, south of Belleair Road.
Police said Friday afternoon they aren’t on scene searching anymore, but are still working the case they said is still active.
Kuqo’s family tells us they believe Largo Police have done everything possible to find their father and grandfather, and that if he were in the immediate area, they would’ve found him.
“I have hope that we’re going to find him, and we’re not going to stop looking until we find him,” said his daughter, Linda Mita.
For years, Mita says her father would travel back and forth from the U.S. to Greece, but now with dementia, he, his wife, and two more family members moved here for good about seven weeks ago.
“We had his birthday on November 7th,” Mita said. “He was very happy; we were singing and doing our dancing and he was just sitting and having a good time with us.”
She says while family was sleeping last Friday, he left his new apartment wearing a grey pajama top, dark sweatpants and Skechers slides. They kept an Air Tag for finding him in case he wandered off in his wallet because previously he never left home without dressing and taking it with him.
“Almost everybody has a [surveillance] camera,” said Linda’s husband, Kosta, addressing the public. “Please spend five, 10 minutes, go through that Friday and see if anything you can see is going to be really, really helpful for the police and for us.”
“We’re continuing to post flyers and spreading out our search,” said their daughter, Elena, in a Facebook video posted by private search team We Are The Essentials. “Police are spreading out their search a little bit further in case someone gave him a ride to help him and left him somewhere.”
Friends continue to volunteer in helping search, but also strangers who’ve helped them not feel alone.
“One lady said, ‘My husband left and we found him,’” said Linda. “One other lady said, ‘I came here because I went through the same thing.’ She had her mother leave the house and they found her after 90 days.”
The search has now expanded throughout Pinellas County, as more people continue to contact the family offering to help. They plan to search more places this weekend.
“More people knowing is better,” she adds. “We have more chances to find him.”