Levi Blake was 80 years old when he was last seen in Omaha, Nebraska, on August 17, 2023. Public case information described him as a Black man, about 5 feet 9 inches tall and weighing roughly 130 to 150 pounds, with brown eyes and a bald head; he also used the name Tyrone. He was last seen near the Adams Community Center at 3230 John A. Creighton Boulevard, walking northeast along John A. Creighton Boulevard, and he was reportedly wearing a gray shirt and black pants.
The Omaha Police Department was listed as the investigating agency, and the case was reported the next day, August 18, 2023.
As the days turned into weeks, concern grew because Blake had dementia, a condition that made his disappearance especially urgent and painful for his family and community. By mid-November 2023, the Omaha Police Department and Blake’s family were still pleading for help, asking people across the metro area to search their own neighborhoods and pay attention to places that might not be frequently traveled. Police said areas he was known to frequent had already been carefully searched, and they also said he may have gotten on a bus on 30th Street between Bedford and Spaulding Streets, though they did not have video confirming that and did not know where he might have gone afterward. His son, Terrance Collier, urged the public not to rule out any area, saying people could help even if they thought it was unlikely Blake had reached their neighborhood.
The search for Blake became a community effort marked by uncertainty, hope, and distress. Family friend Sherman Wells encouraged people who searched their neighborhoods to share the areas they covered on social media so a map could be created, using hashtags connected to the search. Blake’s family and police continued trying to widen attention around the case, because after 90 days missing, there was still no clear answer about where he had gone. The circumstances were deeply troubling: an elderly man with dementia had vanished from North Omaha, and despite organized search efforts, public appeals, and police involvement, no one had been able to bring him home.
On May 3, 2024, the search reached a heartbreaking end when human remains were found near the fence line of Conestoga Elementary School in a secluded area with overgrown grass. Omaha police later identified the remains as Levi Blake after an autopsy and fingerprint comparison. Police said there were no signs of foul play. Local reporting noted that multiple search parties had gone through Omaha looking for him after he disappeared, but they had not found him during those earlier efforts. His public case data now indicates that the case resolution status is Deceased, meaning the missing person case is closed and he was located deceased.
After Blake was found, his family spoke publicly about grief, frustration, and the lingering need for answers. Terrance Collier said he hoped his father’s death would raise awareness about dementia and the importance of checking on elderly people and looking out for one another. He described the loss as part of an especially painful time for the family and called on the wider community to be mindful and caring across neighborhoods and backgrounds. Services for Levi Blake were scheduled for May 17, 2024, at Hope & Refuge Ministries in Omaha. The case began with an 80-year-old man last seen walking near the Adams Community Center, grew into a months-long search across Omaha, and ended with the sorrowful identification of his remains near a North Omaha school, leaving his loved ones to mourn him while urging the community to remember the vulnerability of people living with dementia and the responsibility neighbors share in watching over one another.Last Seen: Aug 17, 2023
