(GoRealNewsNow.com) – Amidst a concerning situation, a North Carolina family is urgently searching for Marine Corporal Charles Alex Benfield, who has gone missing from Camp Pendleton in Southern California.
Earlier this month, the Marine was in downtown San Diego, where he was detained for public intoxication. He was subsequently released from the McAlister Institute Recovery and Bridge Center in mid-April.
Sarah Lazo, Benfield’s sister, expressed anxiety, stating, “We’re all worried. This isn’t normal behavior for Alex, just to leave and not to have any contact with anyone, especially my mom.”
Lazo continued her thoughts, “He was saying how he was scared, he was going to lose his rank because they had to meet that following morning at 8 a.m., which he had obviously missed. He said he needed to find his phone, so he was going to go search for that.”
A Marines communications director claimed that Benfield, a field artillery cannoneer assigned to Battalion Landing Team 1/5, 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit, “did not report for duty the morning of April 15 following weekend liberty in the San Diego area.”
“The 15th MEU is aware that Cpl. Benfield was detained by San Diego police [on] April 14 and released later that day,” the statement continued, adding that Marines from Benfield’s unit searched for him in downtown San Diego.
The statement also read, “The safety and accountability of our Marines and sailors is a top priority. The 15th MEU has requested the assistance of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) and will continue to attempt to locate Cpl. Benfield to ensure his wellbeing.”
Despite Alex being on active duty and under NCIS investigation, his family is taking to social media to spread missing persons posters, as San Diego police cannot officially declare him missing.
According to Benfield’s family, he would not abandon his duties, as he was dedicated and had recently reenlisted for four more years with the Marines.
Lazo revealed troubling details about his financial activity and said that they were able to find out that his bank had been cleared out with no money left in it.
Despite their efforts, which included reaching out to hospitals, hotels, and the medical examiner, the family is still searching for answers.
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