A Son Has Been Missing For 34 Days. His Family Demands Answers

LOS ANGELES, CA — It’s been 34 days since Juan Hernandez last saw his family. It took less than a day for his mother, Yajaira Hernandez, to know something was suspicious. But after relentless search efforts throughout the city and as far as the Inland Empire, nothing has turned up that might finally bring the close-knit family back together.

By all accounts, Juan is not only a wonderful child, but a supportive figure to his younger relatives as well. He’s enrolled at El Camino College as an engineering student, with hopes of transferring to USC where his brother recently graduated.

“He loves to run, exercise, likes to bully his family in a good way, very sarcastic, great sense of humor,” his mother said. “Everyone who knows him, he's very athletic, always trying to do better. As a mother, I can tell everyone, he’s the best kid. He’s my baby, my best hand. He deserves so much more.”

The red flags surrounding his disappearance are numerous. Juan was last seen the night of Sept. 22, when he clocked out of his job at a South L.A. dispensary planning to return home. A few days later, his abandoned car was found idling in an alley near Figueroa Street and 64th Street, without his phone, wallet, sweater or backpack.

There’s been no record of financial transactions, phone messages, or social media usage in the weeks since his disappearance. No fingerprints or other leads were found in his empty car, which the family says was yet another example of LAPD’s incredibly unhelpful response throughout the ordeal.

“It’s overwhelming that as a family, we’re going through this, and then having to beg LAPD for help,” Yajaira Hernandez said. “I took them proof, messages he sent to show he always communicates, every single day. They didn’t take me seriously until 8 days later, and even now they don’t take me seriously. I call them, and all they say is ‘we’re looking into it, we’re investigating.’”

On Sunday, the family held a protest in Downtown Los Angeles to continue bringing awareness to the case. After gathering at City Hall, the group marched around LAPD headquarters, before convening outside the entrance to ask for accountability from the ones with the tools to help.

The scene was emotional, complete with desperate pleas and cracking voices as Juan’s loved ones demanded to be heard. Chants of “help me find Juan” and “bring Juan home” filled the streets, and passing cars honked in support as demonstrators held signs for hours.

“These kids are missing their uncle,” one person said.

“What would you do if it was your son?” Juan’s aunt yelled at the LAPD walls.

Community members march through Downtown to bring awareness to Juan Hernandez' disappearance.

Family, friends and community members have continued to post flyers throughout L.A., and the #helpmefindjuan hashtag has been a fixture on social media. But rather than being an asset in the search, Juan’s mother says communicating with LAPD has been another job in itself, and one that has reaped few benefits.

“They have the manpower for search warrants, video surveillance, to do all the stuff that we can’t,” Hernandez said. “We should be working together, not against each other. I feel like they’re not working with us.”

The family is beginning to search for a private investigator, but noted the high cost of retaining someone’s services for even a week. A GoFundMe has been set up with a $25,000 goal to help with pay for an investigator and offset the lost wages from taking significant time off work to search for the son.

The family is also already using their horrific experience to help improve future missing person search efforts. On Juan’s 22nd birthday, the family launched helpmefindjuan.com, which includes a section with avenues for others whose loved ones are missing.

Yajaira Hernandez says the family took it upon themselves to contact hospitals, shelters, mental health facilities and similar organizations after LAPD failed to provide a list of resources. She doesn’t want anyone else to have to sort through the jumble.

“I’m lucky to have such a great support system, that doesn’t let me fall, that doesn’t let me down. But there are families that are scared of the badge, that don’t have the resources, that are not bilingual or don’t know how to ask questions. I came up with the idea of the website, not just for juan. But other families that may be going through the same thing.”

The road has been long, and the search has been stressful. But Hernandez remains committed, and says she’ll be back at the LAPD headquarters until her son’s disappearance finally receives the attention it deserves.

“We’re not going to stop,” she said. “I’m not going to stop. I know there will come a day where I have to go back to work and do everything, but even working, I won’t stop. I’ll still be here and I’ll be fighting until we bring our son back.”

Anyone with information on Juan Hernandez’s disappearance is asked to call Yajaira Hernandez, at 323-633-6224.

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