MISSING MAN’S CAR FOUND IN JACUMBA HOT SPRINGS, DISAPPEARANCE DEEMED “SUSPICIOUS”
By Miriam Raftery, East County News Service
May 16, 2016 (Jacumba Hot Springs) – A Honda Civic belonging to a missing Buena Park man, Jonathan Barmaki, has been found by Border Patrol agents on Old Highway 80 near a welcome sign to Jacumba Hot Springs on May 9th. Agents found Barmaki's cherished 15-year-old dog, Andy, dead inside the vehicle.
The vehicle was not out of gas and Barmaki’s wallet and keys were missing, though his cell phone, along with dog food and a dog bowl, were left in the car. The car windows were rolled up and footsteps from the vehicle led 70 feet to a border fence 25 feet high. Authorities are investigating the disappearance as"suspicious,"10 News reports.
Barmaki, a real estate agent who buys and sells homes for a living, left Buena Park on April 30th. According to KNSD, surveillance video showed Barmaki at the Target at Plaza Bonita mall around 9:30 p.m. last Saturday, May 7th, where he bought toiletries, a phone charger and clothes. Around 5 a.m. Sunday, May 8th, video shows him buying gas at a National City Valero gas station.
His vehicle was found sometime in the early hours Monday morning, May 9th and his mother was notified at 3 a.m. of the vehicle's discovery,. But there is still no sign of Jonathan Barmaki.
His mother, Luisa, has said her biggest fear is that her son has been hurt or taken by someone. She has told other media that Jonathan had no history of mental illness and seemed happy when he left home. But when he failed to answer phone calls she became worried.
LuisaBermaki says Jonathan and his dog were best friends and that he would never have voluntarily left his dog. She has also indicated that he is not familiar with the San Diego area and it is unknown what led him to the Jacumba Hot Springs area.
If you have any information, please call Buena Park Police or you can reach Luisa Barmaki at 714-293-4113.