John Paul Fernandez, known to family as JP or Japes, was 22 when he vanished from his family’s home on Kentucky Avenue in Middletown, New Jersey, during the early hours of December 13, 2015. A senior studying accounting at Seton Hall University, he had been preparing for a jog the night before. He is described as Filipino, 5 feet 9 inches to 5 feet 10 inches, about 135 pounds, with black hair, brown eyes and a birthmark on his left arm. Last seen wearing a dark grey leather jacket with a light gray fabric hood, black and white high-top Heelys and possibly carrying a red backpack.

The morning he was noticed missing, the family found a six-page letter tucked inside a stuffed eagle in which John wrote about feeling inadequate and mentioned wanting to end his life in a high place in the woods. That same day his cellphone was found in a Ziploc bag on the side of Route 36 near Natco Lake in Hazlet, leading investigators to consider the nearby Henry Hudson Trail as an area of interest. Searches involved local police, K9 units, helicopters, ATVs and dive teams, and volunteer groups have continued searches in later years. If anyone knew John, his routines, or has information about the Henry Hudson Trail or Natco Lake area around December 13, 2015, please come forward.