A Fresno State student has been reported missing as of Friday, March 1, according to the student’s family.
Antonio Jimenez was last seen on Thursday, Feb. 29, near his home residence in the area of McKinley and Lafayette avenues.
“I reported him missing Friday night after I didn’t hear from him and his phone was turned off,” said Maria Tom, Jimenez’s mother, in a Collegian interview.
Tom said she believed he was at school because Jimenez has classes on Friday mornings.
The 19-year-old was scheduled to work at 4 p.m. on Friday afternoon at Gazebo Gardens, but he was a no-show.
“He is not the type of person to go silent at all,” said Bryan Alonso, a friend and Fresno State student.
A missing person flyer was created on March 2 and was shared on various social media platforms.
“Our friend Antonio, a Fresno State student who works weekends at Gazebo Gardens, has gone missing under suspicious circumstances,” Gazebo Gardens said in an Instagram post. “His family and friends are very worried for his safety.”
The Fresno Police Department initially posted a missing person’s report. But it was announced today that there is no evidence to believe he is the victim of violence.
“Missing Persons detectives assigned to this case believe there is no foul play at this time and he is voluntarily missing,” the police department said.
Kelly Jimenez, Jimenez’s sister, reached out to the Fresno State Instagram page over the weekend and asked if the moderator would share the flyer.
This was the response: “Hello. This is very unfortunate, but our social media focus is on publishing information that is directly related to Fresno State activities. As a result, we unfortunately cannot help you spread the word through our official social platforms.”
The Collegian asked University Communications for a statement regarding the reply. The office said that the individual received a standard statement from a student intern.
“We are updating our training materials to ensure this doesn’t happen in the future,” said Lisa Bell, public information officer for University Communications. “As a university, we are fully committed to working with local authorities to bring Antonio home safely.”
Following the update, Fresno State’s Instagram account shared the Fresno Police Department’s social media post on their story.
The Collegian reached Tom, Jimenez’s mother, to ask if there was any reason to believe he isn’t voluntarily missing like the police department has stated.
“I can’t say it is or it isn’t. I wouldn’t know. Just want my son to be back home safe,” Tom said in response.
Jimenez is 5 feet, 8 inches tall with brown hair and eyes. If there is any information on his whereabouts, individuals are asked to contact the Fresno Police Department.
