Police have issued an alert for a West Side man who's been missing since Saturday.
Wilson Barajas, 30, told his mother he was going for a walk at McKinley Park, near his parents' Brighton Park home, and hasn't been seen since.
Barajas left his wallet, cash, and credit cards. He had his cellphone, but family members say there has been no activity on the phone since he disappeared.
"I just don't understand, " said his mother Maria Luisa Barajas in Spanish, as she choked back tears. "He's very responsible. He wouldn't just disappear. He had no problems with anyone. I just want people who may have seen him or seen something to call police."
Barajas graduated from UIC on May 5th with two Master's Degrees, one in Education, another in Physics.
He returned from a trip to Italy on Thursday, cutting the trip short because he wasn't feeling well. He had scheduled a doctor's appointment for Monday, according to his family.
Barajas cousin, Aracely Barajas, flew in from Phoenix and has been busy organizing the search effort. They've filed a missing persons report with the Chicago Police Department, posted flyers and combed Mckinley Park. They have also visited area hospitals, and the city morgue, but there's no sign of Barajas -- an avid athlete who's taken classes in everything from martial arts to cooking.
"He's a lifetime learner. A modern day Renaissance man, who likes to know about everything. We're not giving up hope. It's all we've got. We need to find him," Aracely Barajas said.
Anyone with information is asked to call 911 or the Wentworth Area Special Victims Unit at 312-747-8385.
