OH OH - Adam Lake, 17, Hilliard, 24 March 2001

[McSarahG]

Hi all, I'm Adam's sister and I just found this page, 18 years later. Thank you for your concern. To set the record straight, the police were wrong: Adam DID NOT leave of his own accord! He was last seen at a party two blocks away from our mom's house in Hilliard, OH. He didn't have any money that we know of, and he was planning to get his GED and attend Ohio State in the fall (he had recently been expelled for smoking weed at school). I believe the reason that caution is advised on his missing flyer is that someone started a rumor that he was going to copycat the Columbine shootings on the one year anniversary of the shootings. That is ridiculous because he went missing almost a month before that anniversary. The cops thought they were going to be heroes by stopping a school shooting, so they didn't take us seriously that Adam was truly missing. Then they gave up when the Columbine anniversary came and went without incident. They have not been much help since then, and they even tried to close the case once by claiming that it was all a custody issue and that Adam was with our dad (not true!!! No one in our family has seen him since that night!). The body with the Hilliard track pants is interesting, but the age estimation is too old and Adam was not on the track team or an athlete.
Thank you for all you do on this website!

Hello, welcome, and thank you for the insight! Forgive me if this question has already been answered but do you have a description of that backpack?

 

[McSarahG]

Hi all, I'm Adam's sister and I just found this page, 18 years later. Thank you for your concern. To set the record straight, the police were wrong: Adam DID NOT leave of his own accord! He was last seen at a party two blocks away from our mom's house in Hilliard, OH. He didn't have any money that we know of, and he was planning to get his GED and attend Ohio State in the fall (he had recently been expelled for smoking weed at school). I believe the reason that caution is advised on his missing flyer is that someone started a rumor that he was going to copycat the Columbine shootings on the one year anniversary of the shootings. That is ridiculous because he went missing almost a month before that anniversary. The cops thought they were going to be heroes by stopping a school shooting, so they didn't take us seriously that Adam was truly missing. Then they gave up when the Columbine anniversary came and went without incident. They have not been much help since then, and they even tried to close the case once by claiming that it was all a custody issue and that Adam was with our dad (not true!!! No one in our family has seen him since that night!). The body with the Hilliard track pants is interesting, but the age estimation is too old and Adam was not on the track team or an athlete.
Thank you for all you do on this website!

Hello, welcome, and thank you for the insight! Forgive me if this question has already been answered but do you have a description of that backpack?

Hi all, I'm Adam's sister and I just found this page, 18 years later. Thank you for your concern. To set the record straight, the police were wrong: Adam DID NOT leave of his own accord! He was last seen at a party two blocks away from our mom's house in Hilliard, OH. He didn't have any money that we know of, and he was planning to get his GED and attend Ohio State in the fall (he had recently been expelled for smoking weed at school). I believe the reason that caution is advised on his missing flyer is that someone started a rumor that he was going to copycat the Columbine shootings on the one year anniversary of the shootings. That is ridiculous because he went missing almost a month before that anniversary. The cops thought they were going to be heroes by stopping a school shooting, so they didn't take us seriously that Adam was truly missing. Then they gave up when the Columbine anniversary came and went without incident. They have not been much help since then, and they even tried to close the case once by claiming that it was all a custody issue and that Adam was with our dad (not true!!! No one in our family has seen him since that night!). The body with the Hilliard track pants is interesting, but the age estimation is too old and Adam was not on the track team or an athlete.
Thank you for all you do on this website!

 

[SAMS]

Was Adam having beef with anyone at school or that could have attended the party?

 

[ChatteringBirds]

I just read this case for the first time.
I wonder why his family believes what they believe (but I understand why they wouldn't want to release those details).

It's never too late for someone who knows something to come forward.

Adam's case in NamUs:
The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

 

[Blonded]

Hi all, I'm Adam's sister and I just found this page, 18 years later. Thank you for your concern. To set the record straight, the police were wrong: Adam DID NOT leave of his own accord! He was last seen at a party two blocks away from our mom's house in Hilliard, OH. He didn't have any money that we know of, and he was planning to get his GED and attend Ohio State in the fall (he had recently been expelled for smoking weed at school). I believe the reason that caution is advised on his missing flyer is that someone started a rumor that he was going to copycat the Columbine shootings on the one year anniversary of the shootings. That is ridiculous because he went missing almost a month before that anniversary. The cops thought they were going to be heroes by stopping a school shooting, so they didn't take us seriously that Adam was truly missing. Then they gave up when the Columbine anniversary came and went without incident. They have not been much help since then, and they even tried to close the case once by claiming that it was all a custody issue and that Adam was with our dad (not true!!! No one in our family has seen him since that night!). The body with the Hilliard track pants is interesting, but the age estimation is too old and Adam was not on the track team or an athlete.
Thank you for all you do on this website!

Thank you for sharing this information. That is a very curious rumor. If Adam went missing March 24th 2001 that would have been nearly two years after Columbine, well past the one year anniversary.

 

[sammyed]

Adam is now missing twenty years today. Hoping for answers for his loved ones.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

Bumping up Adam's case. It's my opinion LE dropped the ball back in 2001. I assume at least some of the answers probably start at the party he attended. My heart goes out to his family.

 

[Kiwi1315]

I was a classmate of Adam's at Hilliard Darby. I'm fairly certain that I saw him at the Columbus airport in 2018. I reported this tip to someone locally who helps to investigate missing persons cases as well. I was aware he had been reported missing, so I attempted to approach him. I'm fairly certain he recognized me because he immediately took off. He looked nearly exactly the same as I remembered him from school, so the original picture looks much more like him than the age simulations. He appeared to be traveling with a younger woman in her 20s with brown hair.

 

[JSolt1210]

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/l/lake_adam.html

http://www.nampn.org/cases/lake_adam.html

NCMEC Redirection

http://www.columbuspolice.org/missings/2004/adamlake.pdf


Missing Since: March 24, 2001 from Hilliard, Ohio
Classification: Endangered Runaway
Date Of Birth: June 14, 1983
Age: 18
Height: 6'0" (183 cm)
Weight: 165 lbs (75 kg)
Hair Color: Blonde
Eye Color: Green
Race: White
Gender: Male
Distinguishing Characteristics: Adam has a scar on his right hand. Faint dog bite scar on his cheek. Has crooked teeth.
Clothing: T-shirt, khaki pants and a long, black leather trench coat
AKA: May use the name Benjamin
Case Number: NCMC908501

Details of Disappearance:
Adam speaks fluent Spanish and may travel out of state. His hair may be shorter than in the photo shown. He was carrying a cell phone and a backpack at the time of his disappearance. Authorities believe he left of his own accord.

For unspecified reasons, caution is advised when approaching him and he may be in need of medical assistance.

Investigating Agency:
If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:
Columbus Police Department
1-614-645-4545

Just in case, here are some updated links of this case, as the ones in the original post are all inactive.

Adam Benjamin Lake – The Charley Project

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

By bringing people, information, forensic science and technology together, NamUs helps resolve cases.

www.namus.gov

Have you seen this child?

Missing From: , . Missing Date: .

www.missingkids.org

4841DMOH - Adam Benjamin Lake

According to the Charley Project, the "medical assistance" he may need is due to "Crohn's Disease, a serious inflammatory bowel disorder which can be fatal. He may be in need of medical attention."

I also found an "Adam Benjamin Lake" on the White Pages online living in Richmond, VA. I know this could be due to coincidence or even identity theft, but given the full name and age match (38 years old), and the apparent sighting of him in the Columbus Airport back in 2018, I thought I'd include this information.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

Moving Adam's case up.

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

By bringing people, information, forensic science and technology together, NamUs helps resolve cases.

www.namus.gov

Could someone list his current exclusions, please?

 

[cheemsg]

Article clipped from The Plain Dealer

Adam Lake was in a news article about Jurassic Park when he was 10 (seen here at that age)