The mother of a 32-year-old man who went missing after leaving Victoria Hospital on Jan. 2 is asking for ground searches to begin.
Gloria Sanderson said another son, Craig, and a few friends have searched the area around Victoria Hospital and the Alfred Jenkins Field House in an attempt to locate Dwight Whitehead, who was last seen shortly after 6 p.m. on Jan. 2. She’s hoping to see a larger search in the West Hill and West Flat areas begin as soon as possible.
“I’d like to actually organize a day here that we can just go searching, with more people so you don’t miss anywhere,” said Sanderson, who spoke to the media while accompanied by Whitehead’s daughters, Leah and Breanna. “My son has been going along, him and this other guy, and they’re trying to search for fresh tracks. It’s hard. They said, even a couple nights ago, somebody was searching around the field with flashlights, so that complicates things a little bit.”
Sanderson said her son left Victoria Hospital against the doctor’s wishes that day. Before then, Prince Albert police officers had found him freezing in a snowbank and took him to the hospital. That was around 11:30 a.m. He left that evening, and hasn’t been seen since.
Sanderson said police have checked Whitehead’s cell phone records and bank statements in an attempt to locate him, but nothing has turned up yet.
There was a glimmer of hope when the family was told Whitehead was released from jail on Jan. 5. At the time, she hoped that meant Whitehead was still alive, but didn’t want to be contacted. However, the information turned out to be incorrect.
Sanderson said the search has been “emotionally taxing” for her and the family.
“There’s a lot of people out there who know about him, who are concerned about him,” she said. “Maybe with more exposure, people will say, ‘hey, I just saw him or gave him a ride somewhere.’ I don’t know. All I know is when he left the hospital… he still seemed a little out of it when he left the hospital.”
The Prince Albert Police Service issued a press release on Jan. 10 asking for the public’s help in locating Whitehead, who was described as being 5’8 and around 180 pounds with very short hair and brown eyes. On Friday, police issued a second request for information in an attempt to locate him.
Whitehead’s father, Wayne Whitehead, asked Prince Albert residents to search their yards, sheds, and alleys in an article published by the Saskatoon StarPhoenix. Whitehead is in Prince Albert for the search, and told the StarPhoenix it was unusual for Dwight to be out of contact with his family, especially his two daughters, who he was close to.
Sanderson described Dwight as a joker who loved to laugh, and loved doing things with his daughters and spending money on them. She said it hurts to have him gone.
“It’s kind of devastating news, the concerns about his being out freezing,” she said. “We miss him.”
Dwight Whitehead was last seen in the area around the 1200 block of 24th Street West just after 6 p.m. on Jan. 2. Whitehead was wearing a black sweater, blue jeans, and a hat. He did not have a winter coat or cell phone.
Anyone with information about his whereabouts is asked to call Prince Albert police at 306-953-4222.