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Although African Americans make up just 13 percent of the U.S. population, we account for 37 percent of the missing in the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s database under the age of 18 and 26 percent above the age of 18. Cases involving African Americans also tend to receive less media coverage than missing Whites, with missing men of color getting even less attention.

NewsOne has partnered with the Black and Missing Foundation to focus on the crisis of missing African Americans.

To be a part of the solution, NewsOne will profile missing persons and provide tips about how to keep your loved ones safe and what to do if someone goes missing.


Latania Janelle Carwell and Leon Lamar Tripp

Case Type: Endangered

Date of Birth: April 17, 2001

Missing Date: Apr 17, 2017

Age Now: 16

Missing City: Augusta

Missing State: Georgia

Case Number: 2017-00153988

Gender: Female

Race: Black

Complexion: Medium

Height: 5-4

Weight: 160

Hair Color: Black

Hair Length: Shoulder Length

Eye Color: Brown

Wear Glasses or Contacts: No

Latania Janelle Carwell

Source: Family photograph / Family photograph

Location Last Seen: Latania and her stepfather, Leon Lamar Tripp, 38, were last seen in the 3100 block of Tate Road in August, Georgia in a 1990 GMC Sierra pickup truck with Georgia license plate number PYT6004.

Circumstances of Disappearance: According to Latania’s family, she and Tripp left the family home at about 1:30 a.m. on April 17 after he received a call from a friend who needed help with a flat tire.

Latania’s uncle, Charles Carwell, 33, a warehouse inventory control clerk, says Latania’s mother did not know that her daughter had left the house until she was informed by her other child.

Carwell says that when Latania’s mother reached Tripp by phone, he said he had taken Latania with him to help read the GPS on the smartphone to help find his friend. That explanation does not sit well with Carwell.

“I think there’s some kind of foul play involved,”  Carwell tells NewsOne. “It’s crazy at 16 that she goes missing on her birthday.”

Carwell questioned the wisdom of taking a 16-year-old out at 1:30 a.m. on a school night.

At the end of the day we are in this situation with a missing child because he chose to take her out the house,” he stated.

Carwell described his niece as a good teen who avoided trouble.

“She never did anything like this. She’s down to earth, very smart, and had the whole world in front of her. I’d brag about her to anybody,” said Carwell.

Carwell’s wife, ShaDarrell Carwell, 32, a dietician, is also worried about her niece.

She’s a good kid. She just [recently] turned 16. She makes good grades. She doesn’t go out much. It’s weird. Something’s going on,” she added.

Investigators from the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office have also listed Tripp as a missing person. The 38-year-old is described as being 5 feet 11 inches tall and weighing about 202 pounds. He has black hair and brown eyes.

Investigators did not immediately respond to a request for comment from NewsOne and have made no public indication that foul play might be involved. They believe the pair may be in the Atlanta area. The truck the pair was traveling in was recently found not far from their home

Carwell sent a plaintive message to his niece: “Your uncle and your family love you and we miss you. If you walk through the door today we can get through this,” he said. “Whatever the situation, if you walk through the door, we can work through this.”

Last Seen Wearing: Unknown.

Identifying Marks or Characteristics: Unknown.

Anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of Latania Janelle Carwell and Leon Lamar Tripp is being asked to contact the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office at (706) 821-1020 or (706) 821-1080. You may also contact the Black and Missing Foundation’s confidential Tip Line.

SEE ALSO:

Black Congresswomen To Release Study On Missing Black Children

Here Is The Story Of A Missing D.C. Teen Who Vanished After ‘Going Outside’

Georgia Family Worries For Teen Who Went Missing With Stepfather  was originally published on newsone.com