Search continues for missing University of Illinois junior, Hye Min Choi
CHICAGO (WLS) -- Chicago police are trying to find Hye Min Choi, a University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign student, who has been missing since Saturday afternoon.
Authorities said the 19-year-old, who also goes by the name "Joseph," was last seen at O'Hare Airport. School officials in Urbana-Champaign confirm Choi is a junior majoring in mechanical engineering.
Police said the Choi checked in for United Flight 5892, headed to Greensboro, North Carolina. But according to authorities, he never got on the plane. His bags made it to the airport in Greensboro, where his mother was supposed to pick him up.
Choi's family, desperate to find him, said he told his father on the phone that he was hungry at about 4:50 p.m. Saturday - two and a half hours before his flight. That was the last anyone heard from him.
Police would not say late Tuesday morning if airport cameras show Choi leaving the property. He never booked another flight.
"There doesn't appear to be any criminality involved," Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy said Tuesday. "The young man was apparently having some problems in school. We have some leads on where he may be. It appears that he may or may not have wanted to go home."
Despite that statement, Choi's family said he has no reason to leave the airport and that he cannot drive. They also said they were planning a birthday party for him.
Anyone with information is asked to call police.
