One man, Jimi Patrick, 19, went missing Wednesday last week, while three other men, 22-year-old Mark Sturgis, Tom Meo, 21, and 18-year-old Dean Finnochiaro were all last seen on Friday. Authorities suspect foul play in the men’s disappearance and have been involved in a widespread search on a large rural property located north of Philadelphia. As reported by CNN, Local and state police and the FBI are currently involved in the search. A man, related to the owners of the rural property currently being searched, was taken into custody on an unrelated charge on Monday.
Search for Bucks County men continues
Of the four missing men, Newtown Township Police Department said Patrick was reported missing on Thursday after he didn’t turn up at work and had no contact with either his family or friends since 6 p.m. Wednesday. Sturgis and Meo were last seen together Friday night near the Doylestown area, while Middletown Township Police say Finocchiaro was last seen getting into a vehicle at around 6:30 p.m. and has not been heard from since.
New post: "Police search for 4 missing young men in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, DA believes foul play involved - S… https://t.co/upZlHgf4Bx
— Major Victor Bravo (@Conservatexian) July 10, 2017
Matthew Weintraub, the Bucks County District Attorney, said they believe four men are acquainted with each other, but that this information still needs to be confirmed.
When Weintraub was asked if officials believe foul play is involved, he said it did seem so. At a press conference on Monday he said officials have been treating the disappearance of the men as criminal investigation all along.
Weintraub did say the leads they have are “incredibly hot” and that they are making progress with the investigation.
A reporter asked Weintraub whether he thought the four men were still alive, to which he replied that he hopes and prays they are, as that would obviously be the best outcome.
Possible suspect in custody?
MUGSHOT: Man Arrested Who Could Be Involved In Disappearance Of 4 #BucksCounty Menhttps://t.co/2WIxxKm6vv pic.twitter.com/rn6MzI6TZ4
— CBS Philly (@CBSPhilly) July 10, 2017
Since that press conference, more news has come out, as an arrest has been made while the search for the four young men continues.
According to a report by ABC 6 Action News, authorities in Bucks County on Monday arrested 20-year-old Cosmo DiNardo on an unrelated gun violation charge from February. When DiNardo was found, he was in possession of a 20-gauge shotgun and relating ammunition. According to the arrest report, DiNardo suffers from mental illness and had been involuntarily committed to a mental institution at that time.
While the charge was dropped in February, authorities have refiled the charge on Monday. DiNardo was arrested at a residence belonging to his family in Bensalem, one of several locations currently being searched by authorities Monday. His family also reportedly owns the large farm in Solebury Township where an active search for the four missing men was launched on Monday.
While at the time of writing, it is unknown whether DiNardo is suspected to be involved in the disappearance of the four men, he is now being held on $1 million bail.