No new signs of missing man

The search for Ronald Johnson, 74, Riverdale, N.D., was scaled back Monday after no new information on his whereabouts has been discovered.

“Currently Civil Air Patrol has ceased their operations pending any new evidence or circumstance that would warrant searching other areas,” said Don Charging, McLean County sheriff.

Last week Charging discovered that Johnson was at 4 Bears Casino and Lodge in New Town, N.D., early in the morning on Oct. 16.

Prior to that, Johnson planned to visit his son in Jamestown on Oct. 15, his sister in Valley City on Oct. 16, and be in Fargo Oct. 17 for a stress test at the Veterans Affairs hospital there.

Family members have said a trip to a casino to play poker was something Johnson would occasionally do. But after New Town, Johnson failed to make any of the appointments.

“There’s nothing reported to us anyway, no findings at all,” Charging said. “Nothing to warrant a ground search or water search.”

The volunteer-based North Dakota Wing of the Civil Air Patrol searched from the skies for a week with no results.

“They pretty much covered the southern and western parts of North Dakota,” Charging said.

On Monday, Charging searched McLean County and parts of Ward County, as someone has at the department since Oct. 25.

The discovery of Johnson at 4 Bears also prompted a larger search area.

“Every day we have somebody out,” Charging said.

After his VA appointment, Johnson was to travel to the Needles, Calif., area for the winter.

Charging said there is a deputy who is in contact with the Needles branch of the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, which confirmed that it will search for Johnson.

“We will check at the resorts in our area and see if we can locate the vehicle to start and go from there,” said Sgt. Clayton Bailey, with the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department.

Johnson is a diabetic and has undergone double bypass surgery in the past. He is 5 feet 11 inches tall, weighs 220 pounds, has gray hair, a beard and a mustache and wears glasses. He has no memory issues.

In California, law enforcement will also look to find where he has lived in the past, Bailey said.

“A lot of the times they get habitual,” he said. “They find a spot they like and return to that same spot.”

Johnson drives a gold 1982 Cadillac Fleetwood four-door passenger car. The North Dakota license plate number is HZZ466. Charging said this is a unique vehicle and people should be on the lookout.

Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Johnson is asked to contact local law enforcement.

“We hope we have a positive outcome on this and somebody recognizes the vehicle someplace,” Charging said.

Sun reporter Ben Rodgers can be reached at 701-952-8455 or by email at brodgers@jamestownsun.com

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