MATTHEW WILSON 20yrs old, Houston TX - missing since 12/14/07(Found Safe)

[Nut44x4]

Just found out at HFTM.
Wow....

Missing Rice student's car found abandoned in Berkeley, Calif.

01:04 PM CDT on Saturday, June 14, 2008

HOUSTON -- The car that belongs to missing Rice University student Matthew Wilson has been found in Berkeley, Calif.

Wilson’s silver 2004 four-door Dodge Neon with Oklahoma license plate 863 MCZ was towed as an abandoned vehicle from a residential street in West Berkeley June 10. 

Berkeley police informed the Rice University Police Department there were no obvious signs of foul play inside the car, and they have issued a description and photos of Wilson with a request for the community’s help in searching for the missing 20-year-old from Haworth, Okla. Rice police notified Wilson’s family of the news.

Wilson, a junior majoring in computer science, was last seen by his roommate in their off-campus apartment Dec. 14 and he did not report to school for spring semester classes for which he had preregistered. His disappearance last year attracted national media attention but led to no clues about the circumstances of his disappearance or his whereabouts.

”The discovery of Matthew’s car is an important piece of evidence,” said Rice Police Chief Bill Taylor. “We will cooperate fully with the Berkeley Police Department investigation, and we’re all hopeful that Matthew will be found alive and well.”,p>Rice University is offering a $10,000 reward for information that leads to the discovery of Wilson.  His family is also offering $10,000 for information leading to his return.  Crime Stoppers of Houston is offering a $5,000 reward for information that leads to felony charges in the case.

Wilson is Caucasian, 5 feet 7 inches tall, weighs 135 pounds, and has red hair and green eyes. He had a full beard when last seen.

To contact the Rice University Police Department, call 713-348-6000. To contact Crime Stoppers, call 713-222-TIPS (8477).  The Berkeley Police Department can be reached at 510-981-5900.

http://www.khou.com/news/local/stories/khou080614_tnt_ricestudent.1c0b80b.html

[Tamikosmom]

Matt's car has been found in California.

I'll post more details later.

Please continue to pray for this young man and his family.

I will Kermit.

Janet

[pdh3]

Matt's car has been found in California.

I'll post more details later.

Please continue to pray for this young man and his family.

I hope this leads to answers for his family. My prayers are with them.

[klaasend]

WOW - hopefully this will bring some much needed answers.  I will continue to pray for Matt.

[Bearlyhere]

Sending prayers for Matthew and his family.

[Tamikosmom]

New developments in missing Rice student
Saturday, June 14, 2008 | 10:49 AM

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- There is an update now on a missing student from Rice University.
 
Police in Berkley, California, say they found a car that belonged to Matthew Wilson. The 21-year-old computer science major disappeared last December during finals. Police say there is no evidence of foul play so far in the case.

His family is in Oklahoma. A $25,000 reward is being offered for any information regarding Wilson's disappearance.

http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=6205571

+++++++++++

[Tamikosmom]

Matt's car has been found in California.

I'll post more details later.

Please continue to pray for this young man and his family.

I will Kermit.

Janet

Kermit ... you take care.  I know how emotionally connected you are to the disappearance of this young man.

Janet

[MuffyBee]

Car of missing Rice student found in California

Associated Press - June 14, 2008 10:05 PM ET

HOUSTON (AP) - Officials say a car belonging to a Rice University honors student missing since December has been found in Berkeley, Calif.

Police found a 2004 silver Dodge Neon belonging to 21-year-old Matthew J. Wilson on Tuesday in West Berkeley, authorities said. Wilson has not been located.

Wilson was last seen by his roommate at their off-campus apartment on Dec. 14, five days before a deadline to turn in take-home exams for his classes.

The Houston Chronicle reported the discovery of the car on its Web site today.

http://www.kxan.com/Global/story.asp?S=8492864
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Here is a brief article, which doesn't say much more than Matthew Wilson's car has been found.  I continue to hold hope Matthew will be found alive and well, and await any news Kermit can bring.  I pray it will be good news. 

[Tamikosmom]

06/14/2008
Missing Rice U. student's car found in California

HOUSTON -- (June 14, 2008) – The car that belongs to missing Rice University student Matthew Wilson has been found in Berkeley, Calif.

Wilson's silver 2004 four-door Dodge Neon with Oklahoma license plate 863 MCZ was towed as an abandoned vehicle from a residential street in West Berkeley June 10. 

Berkeley police informed the Rice University Police Department there were no obvious signs of foul play inside the car, and they have issued a description and photos of Wilson with a request for the community's help in searching for the missing 20-year-old from Haworth, Okla. Rice police notified Wilson's family of the news.

Wilson, a junior majoring in computer science, was last seen by his roommate in their off-campus apartment Dec. 14 and he did not report to school for spring semester classes for which he had preregistered. His disappearance last year attracted national media attention but led to no clues about the circumstances of his disappearance or his whereabouts.

"The discovery of Matthew's car is an important piece of evidence," said Rice Police Chief Bill Taylor. "We will cooperate fully with the Berkeley Police Department investigation, and we’re all hopeful that Matthew will be found alive and well."

Rice University is offering a $10,000 reward for information that leads to the discovery of Wilson.  His family is also offering $10,000 for information leading to his return.  Crime Stoppers of Houston is offering a $5,000 reward for information that leads to felony charges in the case.

Wilson is Caucasian, 5 feet 7 inches tall, weighs 135 pounds, and has red hair and green eyes. He had a full beard when last seen.

To contact the Rice University Police Department, call 713-348-6000. To contact Crime Stoppers, call 713-222-TIPS (8477).  The Berkeley Police Department can be reached at 510-981-5900

http://www.media.rice.edu/media/NewsBot.asp?MODE=VIEW&ID=11128

[Nut44x4]

Snipped from>>
http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=6205571
Video at site

Berkeley police are examining the car to see if there's any information that might help investigators here figure out where Matthew is.

"There's no sign of foul play in the car," said Rice University Police Chief Bill Taylor. "There are some pieces of property of Matthew's found in the car. The car had been sitting for quite some time. It was quite dusty and a little bit of mold in the car."

Some of Wilson's clothes, books and a backpack were recovered from his car. Investigators with the Berkley Police Department are hoping to generate some leads. So far, the trail has run cold.

[Nut44x4]

Faith at HFTM posted this link to a message board...

http://findmatthewwilson.proboards83.com/index.cgi?board=general&action=display&thread=2

[Kermit]

Matthew and his car

The car was found locked.
I can't give you any more of the details at this time because of the ongoing investigation.
Thank you all for prayers for this family. Keep up the prayers lil monkeys.



Matthews mother Cathy

[Tamikosmom]

June 14, 2008, 10:25PM
Missing Rice student's car found in California
21-year-old Matthew J. Wilson disappeared in December

The car of a missing 21-year-old Rice University student, whose disappearance in December garnered national media attention, has been located in Berkeley, Calif., authorities said Saturday.

Police identified the 2004 silver Dodge Neon with Oklahoma license plates as belonging to Matthew J. Wilson after it was towed as an abandoned vehicle from a residential street on Tuesday, authorities said.

"My understanding is that (Berkeley police) have done a thorough search of the car and feel comfortable that there was no indication of foul play," said Rice University Police Chief Bill Taylor.

He added that Berkeley police indicated the car had been abandoned for some time.

Wilson's mother, Cathy Wilson, said she has no idea why her son, who was last seen in Houston on Dec. 14, would be in Berkeley or whether he knew anyone there.

Though she is glad the car was found, she said, the discovery did not offer her full relief.

"I'm just pondering what else could have happened," she said.

Matthew Wilson, a straight-A computer science major from Oklahoma, was reported missing by his roommate, who last saw him at their off-campus apartment.

His car and backpack were gone, but his cell phone and all of his clothing were still in the apartment, police said.

Although he had pre-registered for spring semester courses, Matthew Wilson, a first-semester junior, did not turn in final exams that were due Dec. 19. He also did not follow through on an offer to take a student to the airport Dec. 15.

Matthew Wilson withdrew $500 from his checking account and bought charcoal and matches, a car cover and window shade before his disappearance, prompting police to believe he may have left on his own accord.

"Some of the purchases he made that were made before he left may have been purchases someone would have made if they were going to do some traveling," Taylor said.

Cathy Wilson said it would be out of character for her son to leave without communicating with his family.

She now believes, however, that he may have left on his own volition.

"If he's safe and he's away because he wants to be, that's fine," she said. "I just want to know that he's safe."

Matthew, her youngest child, was a high school valedictorian who was attending Rice on a full scholarship, she said.

Family members and friends have made several pleas for information leading to Matthew Wilson's whereabouts.

They have offered a $25,000 reward and launched Web sites dedicated to finding the student.

"It's been emotional turmoil for our whole family," Cathy Wilson said. "Our lives have just been in limbo."

Matthew Wilson is white, 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighing 135 pounds. He has red hair and green eyes and was last seen with a full beard.

Anyone with information about him can contact Rice University Police at 713-348-6000 , Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS or Berkeley police at 510-981-5900.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/metro/5837807.html#Intro

[Tamikosmom]

The car was found locked.

I can't give you any more of the details at this time because of the ongoing investigation.

Thank you all for prayers for this family. Keep up the prayers lil monkeys.

We will Kermit.  Thank you for keep the forum updated.

Janet

[Bearlyhere]

Bringing Matthew's Candles forward:

Light a candle for Matthew...
  Special thanks to Marlee for helping me!   



http://www.gratefulness.org/candles/candles.cfm?l=eng&gi=MattW

I am praying for this young man, his mother and family.

I'll continue to find you - - -

Bringing the candles forward.

[MuffyBee]

Faith at HFTM posted this link to a message board...

http://findmatthewwilson.proboards83.com/index.cgi?board=general&action=display&thread=2

I apologize for interrupting this thread. However, I got 5 nasty, threatening emails yesterday from HFTMissing@yahoo.com to my email that is associated with Scared Monkeys.  I had come here and read, and clicked on the link.  I did not give my email addy out.  I've reported it to my provider as abuse and spam.  It appears HFTM may have been hacked.  It's a sorry state of affairs when this sort of thing happens in a missing persons thread and forum.  Hopefully, Matthew Wilson is alive and well.  If he is, I hope he will contact his mother to let her know he is okay.  It must be terrible for her-the not knowing....

Muffy - the HelpFindtheMissing forum was hacked yesterday.  Everyone who has registered at HFTM received emails from the hacker.  It has nothing to do with SM, only HFTM.

[Bearlyhere]

Is this the car?

[klaasend]

http://newsok.com/grandmother-says-haworth-student-may-have-set-out-on-adventure/article/3258395/?tm=1213673379

Tue June 17, 2008
Grandmother says Haworth student may have set out on adventure

By John David Sutter
Staff Writer

HAWORTH — The grandmother of a missing college student from southeast Oklahoma says her family is taking a new clue in the six-month-old investigation as a sign of hope.

Her grandson, she thinks, may have disappeared on an adventure of his own making.

The car of a missing Rice University student Matthew Wilson, from Haworth, was found abandoned last week in Berkeley, Calif., according to police.

"I certainly pray that we will find him after we have found the car,” said Mary B. Wilson, 82. She added: "It gives me hope. See, we hadn't heard anything in six months ... All I know is just to stay and wait.”

Wilson's 2004 silver Dodge Neon was towed June 10 as an abandoned vehicle from a residential street in west Berkeley. Berkeley police told the Rice University Police Department there were no obvious signs of foul play in the car.

Wilson was last seen on the university's campus in Houston on Dec. 14. He disappeared in the middle of finals week during the first semester of his third year at Rice University, in Houston, Mary Wilson said. His car is one of the first clues uncovered by authorities in his disappearance.

Mary Wilson described her missing grandson as a gentle, quiet man who was very concerned with his studies. She thinks he went on an adventure to California, to "just see what he could do.” Perhaps he became bored with his studies at Rice, she said, even though he loved the university that she said had given him a full scholarship.


Did he leave to spread wings?
"Sometimes young boys ... they want to go and spread their wings out,” she said.
Mary Wilson said Matt's mother, Cathy Wilson, was very protective of her son.

"I think (Matt) was just exploring something; he wanted to stray away for a little while, but his mother is a widow of course and she was very protective of him, as any mother would be after she lost her husband like what happened,” Matt's grandmother said.

Mary Wilson said Matt's father died in his 40s of complications with heart surgery related to his severe rheumatoid arthritis. She said the condition was genetic and family members had told Matt that he should have his heart tested in his 30s to make sure he wasn't developing the same condition.

Matt's grandmother also said it appeared her grandson's junior year studies at Rice were becoming stressful. He was having trouble in a calculus class and was accustomed to being an academic overachiever, she said.

His grandmother said family members are not the least bit angry at Matt, even if he left on his own accord. She said she and Matt's mother just want to receive a postcard letting them know he is OK.

She says she holds out hope that police will find him.

[Kermit]

I'm continuing to pray for Matthews safe return.

[klaasend]

http://findmatthewwilson.proboards83.com/?board=general&action=display&thread=2&page=3

My name is Rosa,

I am from berkeley,Ca

this articule is from berkeley daily planet newspaper:

News Updates:
Missing Rice University Student’s Car Found in West Berkeley
By Riya Bhattacharjee
Monday June 16, 2008
The Berkeley Police Department is helping Houston police investigate the disappearance of a 21-year-old student who has been missing since Dec. 15 from his off-campus Houston apartment, authorities said Friday.

Computer science major Matthew J. Wilson, a junior at Rice University in Houston, Texas, was last seen working in his room by his roommate Elliot Harwell on Dec. 14.

His car and backpack were also missing.

Berkeley police became involved in Wilson’s case when officers found his 2004 silver Dodge Neon in the 1200 block of Allston Way in West Berkeley on June 10.

According to Berkeley Police Department spokesperson Officer Andrew Frankel, a West Berkeley resident alerted the Berkeley police about an abandoned auto on May 10.

“We marked the car and did a follow up 30 days later and saw that the car was still there,” Officer Frankel said. “We ran a license check and learned that the car belonged to Matthew Wilson of Texas. At that point we leant that Matthew was missing since December.”

Frankel said detectives had found no sign of foul play in the car to indicate any criminal activity.

Frankel said the police was not sharing information about the contents found in the car, but that it had been found locked and covered with dust.

“It looked like it had been parked there for a while,” he said.

Frankel said police were not ruling out that Wilson took off in his car on his own accord from Texas and drove to Berkeley.

“We are encouraging anyone who has seen Wilson to let us know,” he said. “We are splashing his pictures in the media and trying to get the word out. It’s possible that he is alive and well, and if that is the case, it’s important that he knows that his family wants to hear from him.”

According to police reports, although no evidence of foul play has been found so far, Wilson’s family members believe he was unlikely to leave in the middle of his finals without communicating with them.

Family and friends described him as a diligent student who was valedictorian at his high school in Oklahoma and an honor role student at Rice.

Wilson reportedly made a $400 cash withdrawal from his bank account on Dec. 14, the day he was last seen

Wilson’s family, Rice University and Crime Stoppers of Berkeley are offering $25,000 in reward money for information on Wilson’s disappearance or his whereabouts.

Wilson, who is from Haworth, Okla., was described in police reports as a white male, weighing 135 lbs., 5-feet seven-inches tall, with red hair and green eyes.

He wears glasses and had a full beard when his roommate last saw him.

Anyone with information about Wilson’s case can call the Rice University Police Department at (713) 348-6000, Houston Crime Stoppers (713) 222-TIPS or the Berkeley Police Department at 981-5900 or 981-5741.