Missing Stansbury Park man with Alzheimer's found after 6 mile walk

By Cimaron Neugebauer The Salt Lake Tribune

Published: June 16, 2012 12:56 pm
This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

A 77-year-old man with Alzheimer's disease went on a six-mile walk and was missing for nearly 7 hours before being found by police near the Tooele County Animal Shelter on Saturday.

Christopher Whitaker was last seen at his home in Stansbury Park at Lakeview subdivision area near Stansbury Lake, said Tooele County Sheriff's office Sgt. Shandy Lewis.

Whitaker was found at about 1:40 p.m., near the dog pound between Tooele and Stansbury Park, according to Lewis who added that Whitaker was "thirsty, but he is OK."

Whitaker was reported missing at 7 a.m., on Saturday after he left on foot and said to be in the late stages of Alzheimer's. Family say Whitaker often carries his coffee cup and some rolling tobacco, Lewis said, adding that his family also states he likes to carry photo albums or video tapes stuffed down his shirt.

Lewis said this isn't the first time Whitaker has taken off, but usually family or police are able to find him within a few hours walking down some street.

cimaron@sltrib.com

Twitter: @CimCity

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