AZ - Rene Layja, 33, Mesa, Maricopa County, Arizona

[spartanx]

Rene Layja​

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Layja, circa 1994; Age progressions to an unknown age

• Missing Since04/22/1994
• Missing FromMesa, Arizona
• ClassificationEndangered Missing
• SexMale
• RaceHispanic
• Date of Birth03/09/1961 (64)
• Age33 years old
• Height and Weight6'3, 240 pounds
• Clothing/Jewelry DescriptionA blue t-shirt, gray pants and black shoes.
• Medical ConditionsLayja is mentally disabled.
• Distinguishing CharacteristicsHispanic male. Black hair, brown eyes. Layja has a gap between his upper front teeth. He is a Mexican citizen and speaks Spanish.

Details of Disappearance​

Layja left his home in Mexico and arrived in Mesa, Arizona to visit his mother's home on April 21, 1994. He was in the United States on a medical visa so he could get medical testing done.

The day after he arrived at his mother's, he told her he was going for a walk. He was not familiar with the neighborhood. When he did not return, his mother reported him missing at 7:40 p.m.

At 3:00 a.m. on April 23, Layja knocked on a stranger's door in Gilbert, Arizona. He was dehydrated and confused at the time. The person called the police, who took him to Maricopa County Hospital for treatment. They didn't realize Layja was listed as a missing person in Mesa.

Layja told the staff at the hospital that he lived in Sonora, Mexico. A social worker bought him a Greyhound bus ticket and dropped him off at the station. The bus driver stated Layja got out at Nogales, Arizona. He has never been heard from again.

Layja's mother is now deceased. His disappearance remains unsolved.

Investigating Agency​

• Mesa Police Department
• 480-644-2100
• 480-644-2211

Source Information​

• NamUs
• Mesa Police Department

 

[spartanx]

I only have one question in this case... if the family knows he's disabled, do they let him go out alone for walks in a neighborhood he doesn't know? Thanks to that stranger who alerted the police, he didn't die that same night... where is René?

Anyway, rest in peace.

 

[HopeRains]

News articles indicate he "wandered" away from the home. He was reported missing in Mesa at 7:40 pm with family and LE searching for him and continuing to do so when he was being interviewed by hospital social workers in Gilbert (who did not know he was missing). The social workers got him a bus ticket to Nogales and dropped him at the bus station in Phoenix. News articles indicate the bus driver saw him get off the bus station at Nogales. His mother passed away in 2008, and per the articles had a good relationship with LE. She did submit her DNA to CODIS.

 

[Pennysmom1]

Mesa's Missing Persons

If you have any information on any of these persons, please call the Mesa Police Department at 480-644-2211, option 2 from the main menu, or your local law enforcement agency. Hector Martinez - Last seen August 2008 NAME: Hector Lorenzo MartinezMISSING: August 12...

www.mesaaz.gov

https://www.doenetwork.org/cases/software/mp-main.html?id=801dmaz

Date of Birth: March 9, 1961
Distinguishing Marks/Features: He is mentally challenged and has a large gap between is two front teeth.

Identifiers​

Dentals: Available
Fingerprints: Available
DNA: Not Available