Ronnie Dean Royal, 43, vanished from Thomasville, North Carolina, on the night of September 6, 2005, after arriving in town by train from Charleston, South Carolina. His father had picked him up on September 5 and brought him to a home on Ridgecrest Street where Ronnie was staying with his father and the father’s roommate. The roommate says he took Ronnie to a nearby store for beer and that Ronnie was back at the house when the roommate went to bed around 9:00 p.m. Ronnie’s father returned from work around 2:00 a.m. and found his son gone.

A search showed Ronnie left behind his wallet, identification, cash and other personal items, a fact the family finds particularly troubling because it suggests he did not plan to leave. He is described as a white male with blue eyes and several distinctive tattoos, including a unicorn, a rebel flag and Ron on his upper right arm, and a wizard, two hearts and a spider web on his left forearm. The Thomasville Police Department investigated but no solid leads have emerged and the case remains open.

If anyone knew Ronnie, saw him in Thomasville around September 6, 2005, or has information about his whereabouts, please share what is known.