Jimmie ‘Jay’ Lee’s father pleads for help in search for missing University of Mississippi student
By Justin Gamble and Camila Moreno-Lizarazo, CNN
The father of missing 20-year-old University of Mississippi student Jimmie “Jay” Lee is pleading for the public’s help in bringing the college student home after the discovery of his car.
“If anyone knows anything or sees anything, say something. Contact law enforcement. Just tell them what you know. This is my plea that you help find my child,” Lee’s father Jimmie Lee, Sr. said in a video plea posted online by police in Oxford, Mississippi.
In social media posts reviewed by CNN and images released by authorities, although Lee dresses in women’s clothing and makeup in some pictures and videos, Lee writes that he identifies as a gay male.
Reached by CNN, Lee’s father says that while he is not ready to give interviews, he hopes the intensified media coverage will help find his son. Lee’s father said the best way the media can help the investigation is to “show his face.”
Police are asking anyone with tips to reach out to them. Lee was reportedly last seen July 8 around 5:58 a.m. wearing a silver robe or housecoat, gold cap and gray slippers leaving Campus Walk Apartments.
On Monday, police recovered Lee’s car, a 2014 black Ford Fusion with a gold racing stripe down the middle of the hood, from a local towing company.
The car with the license plate “JAYLEE1” was towed Friday afternoon from Molly Barr Trails apartment complex. It was taken to the Mississippi State Crime Laboratory for processing while teams from multiple law enforcement agencies searched areas of interest in Oxford, the police department said.
Police believe Lee was visiting someone who lives in Molly Barr Trails before disappearing.
Oxford Police and the University of Mississippi Police departments say they are using all available resources to locate Lee, according to a joint statement.
This has included executing around a dozen search warrants “on both physical and digital entities,” the statement said. Numerous interviews have also been conducted, it said.
Crimestoppers has pledged a $1,000 reward for anybody with information that could lead to finding Lee, according to Oxford Police.
Any tips or information about Lee’s whereabouts should be sent to the Oxford Police Department 662-232-2400, University of Mississippi Police Department at 662-915-7234 and Crime Stoppers at 662-234-8477.
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