Search Is On For Missing Man With Autism In Brooklyn
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A search is underway in Brooklyn for a young man with autism.
Authorities said 20-year-old Brian Gewirtz was last seen Feb. 17 on Cole Street in Marine Park.
Gewirtz is also diabetic and needs his medication, CBS2 reported. He may be feeling disoriented and lethargic.
Search Is On For Missing Man With Autism In Brooklyn
Volunteers were handing out flyers this weekend at the Atlantic Avenue - Barclays Center subway station. The flyer says Gewirtz should be talked to in a normal voice and that he may not respond to his name the first time.
Loved ones say he has never wandered off and can't imagine where he went. They believe he could be on the trains trying to stay out of the cold.
Gewirtz's mother, Kathleen, told 1010 WINS' Roger Stern he might not ask for help.
"He may not realize that he's lost," she said. "He doesn't really have a concept of time, so he may not realize how long it's been."
Gewirtz's father, Steven, was so upset he could barely speak.
"I'm not angry with him, I'm not frustrated. I just love my son very much and I want him home," he said.
"I can't even describe it, just torture. It's like a punishment I can't even explain," he told CBS2's Ilana Gold.
Friends are looking for people to help with the search and set up a Facebook page called Find Brian Gewirtz.
His family is urging anyone who sees him to call police.
"I really just plead to the entire city of New York to help us look for him, to please remember his face," his mother said.
