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American student Kenny Deland, who recently went missing while in France, was last seen at a local store in Montelimar on December 3, 2022. Kenny is a student at New York’s St. John Fisher University in Rochester. The 22-year-old was living in France for educational purposes and was studying at the Université Grenoble Alpes.
Kenny Deland’s family informed the media that they last spoke to him via WhatsApp on November 27, 2022. The student contacted his family after leaving the host family’s home in France and boarding a train to Valence.
Police tried to reach Kenny’s phone through messages on November 30, but no reply was sent. Regarding Kenny’s last appearance at a local store in Montelimar on Friday, December 2, it was found that he made a transaction of $8.40 at the store. Nobody has either seen him or heard from him ever since.
Kenny’s parents are desperately trying to find their son who has been missing for about two weeks now. His mother, Carol Laws, said:
“This can’t be possible. How did he go missing? What happened?”
Kenny Deland was scheduled to return home to the US in the upcoming week. However, his parents received a call in late November from a college liaison, and recalling the phone call, Laws said:
"She said that she had to file a missing person's report because they had not seen him in 24 hours. I'm not there. I'm here mile – thousands of miles away."
Kenny Deland’s father, Kenneth Deland, has expressed his worries over his son going missing, and said:
“We’re worried. We don’t know where he is. Allegedly, the story says on the Internet it was an $8.40 transaction. And then we haven’t heard from him since.”
The missing student’s father, Kenneth Deland, spoke to ABC’s Good Morning America, where he said that they were in touch with Kenny almost every day before the incident. He said that his son would reach out almost daily or every other day.
Kenny Deland was in France through an education program for studying abroad managed by the American Institute for Foreign Study (AIFS). After he was officially reported as missing, the AIFS spoke to ABC News as well and said:
"AIFS joins others concerned for his safety and we are working with local law enforcement who have begun a search. We have been in contact with Kenneth's family and university and we are hoping for his swift and safe return."
Kenny Deland's family pleads for help for their missing son by launching a new website
Authorities and Kenny’s family have constantly tried to reach him via phone and other social media, but nothing has been fruitful so far.
Kenny’s father contacted the embassy, but they were reluctant to disclose any information due to the Privacy Act. Without an adult’s consent, any information about that person cannot be released due to the Privacy Act. Unfortunately, Kenny Deland didn’t sign this off before leaving for France.
The Deland family has launched a new website with the hope that anyone in France or stateside might help them find their missing son.
Kennth Deland, Kenny’s father said that they are all trying to stay positive and hope for the student's return.
His mother pleaded:
"If anybody has a way to help us find him, help us with the officials. Please help us."
Brad Garrett, a former FBI agent, spoke on the incident:
"It would be extremely important to understand who he has talked to, maybe in his age group in France or maybe he's talked to people back here in the United States on the phone."
On the website launched to get information regarding Kenny Deland, the last known information about him is shared. The bank where Kenny had an account was also informed about his disappearance. Police were provided authorization to track purchases made from his account.
Kenny’s family stated on the website:
“We fear the worst and want him to be located.”
His visa expiration date is also shared there.
From some CCTV footage collected from the store in Montelimar, Kenny’s outfit during his last appearance could be figured out. He was wearing a red jacket, blue pants and sneakers. He had a gray beanie, a scarf and a black backpack on him. Kenny’s height and weight are also shared on the site.
