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Family, friends and police search for missing veteran with head injury

San Francisco Examiner - 9/28/2020

An intense search is underway for a missing at-risk U.S. Marine Corps veteran who never returned to his room in a downtown supportive housing building last month

Abraham Isaac Siliezar, who is 56 and of Salvadoran descent, served as an active duty Marine for four years and as Marine reserve for another four. He was described as "a proud Marine and a very respectful and loving man" by his younger sister, Alexandra Siliezar.

"I want to emphasize my brother was very proud to say he left the Marines with medals of conduct. He always asked and wanted a Marine memorial service," Alexandra said. "He would never hurt himself; he wanted the honor of dying as a Marine and he deserves that service."

San Francisco police put out a news release on Aug. 13 that said his sister had last spoken to Siliezar on Aug. 9, when he said he was feeling unwell. An ambulance was called to his apartment in the 200 block of Kearny Street, but he refused medical attention.

Siliezar is considered "at-risk" due to a traumatic brain injury sustained in an attack almost five years ago that left his brain bleeding. Though he recovered after six months of hospitalization, he now has early-onset dementia and epilepsy, according ot his family.

He also does not understand his current health condition or need for medication.

Alexandra said the last known sighting of Siliezar was on Aug. 10, when a camera in the 900 block of Bush Street caught him walking west.

His family, their church, friends, coworkers and concerned air force and army veterans have searched since then for any trace of him.

The Siliezar family immigrated to the U.S. from El Salvador when the country was experiencing turmoil that eventually broke out into civil war. Siliezar's military accomplishments, along with his university education, gave him "the opportunity to continue our parents' dream for a better life," Alexandra said.

In addition to serving in the U.S. military, Siliezar attended UC Irvine and UC Berkeley, graduating from UC Berkeley with a bachelor's degree in sociology. He worked at City Hall during Art Agnos's tenure as mayor, where he focused on early housing development for unhoused people.

"He lived a life of gratitude, regardless of his condition. He always looked at the positive and was a positive, loving human being," Alexandra said.

"He's also a Christian who had a strong faith and called his niece, my daughter, on a nightly basis and tell her to 'Sleep with the angels because you are an angel.' What we want more than anything is to see him alive and healthy," Alexandra added. "We are asking the community to look deeply into any possible person that may look like him and help him come home."

Siliezar wore loose blue jeans, a blue dress shirt and an oversized black jacket at the time of his disappearance. He is 5 feet 6 inches tall, with a thin build.

A long surgical scar is visible on his right forearm, along with a broken right-hand pinky and ring fingers that don't stretch out entirely after a bad fall during a grand mal seizure.

Alexandra said she has called over 20 hospitals both in and out of the state, as well as San Francisco shelters, ICE, the U.S. Coast Guard and Golden Gate Bridge Patrol. She has also left voicemails for local politicians.

Police officers have also sent out dogs to track Siliezar's scent without finding any leads, she said.

"My parents are devastated. My mother is not eating or sleeping; my 89-year-old father is incredibly anxious and has taken it upon himself to search the streets of San Francisco on his own," Alexandra said.

A monetary reward is being offered by the Siliezar family for his safe return or his whereabouts. Any tips, anonymous or otherwise, can be texted to 847411 or conveyed to the SFPD by calling (415) 553-0123.