Police are seeking information about Festus native Norvel Robert "Bobby" Nelson III, 37, who has been missing since early January, said Lt. Todd Mahaney of the Washington County Sheriff's Office.
Nelson reportedly was last seen in the Mineral Point area, Mahaney said.
He said Nelson's wife reportedly was the last person to see him, but police can not locate her for questioning, Mahaney said.
"She is a person of interest," he said
Mahaney said there have been rumors of foul play, but none of those claims have been substantiated.
Nelson's mother, Cathy Politte of Festus, said she believes her son is dead because he always calls her once a week, but she hasn't heard from him since Dec. 31.
Politte said she got calls from a person who said he knew her son and that he had been a victim of foul play.
Before her son went missing, Politte said, he had lived in Jefferson County, although his wife had an apartment in St. Louis, where he also had stayed.
She said Nelson went to Mineral Point to get some of his wife's belongings from a trailer where she had stayed at some point.
Nelson has three children ranging in age from 5-15, Politte said, two of whom live with her and the third with another grandparent.
Nelson's father, Norvel Robert Nelson Jr., also lives in Festus.
Bobby Nelson also has a sister, Amber Gains of Festus.
Mahaney said police have been looking for Nelson for about six weeks.
"Unfortunately, all our leads have been exhausted," he said.
Mahaney said all the information police have received regarding Nelson's whereabouts are from third- and fourth-hand witnesses.
As a result of those leads, though, police are interested in a large rural area in Mineral Point, he said.
"It's all old tif mines and woods," Mahaney said.
Nelson has blond hair and hazel eyes, is 5-10 and weighs approximately 150 pounds, according to the Missouri Highway Patrol's Missing Persons Clearinghouse.
He has tribal tattoos on both arms and a scar on the left side of his face, from his forehead to his ear, according to the patrol's website. Also, he is legally blind.
The last time he was seen, Nelson was wearing a gray sweatshirt, blue jeans and blue tennis shoes, the website says.
The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office also has been notified of the missing person's case, said Capt. Ralph Brown.
Anyone with information about the missing man is asked to call the Washington County Sheriff's Office at 573-438-5478.
