KALIHI, Hawaii (KHON2) — The tragic death of a missing Kalihi man is renewing calls to launch Hawaii’s Silver Alert program.
The program is designed to help find missing seniors and vulnerable adults and is more than 12 months overdue.
60-year-old Noly Pagtulingan, a man with developmental disabilities, went missing after catching TheBus on Thursday, Aug. 14. Taking TheBus was his usual routine on the days when Pagtulingan was off work.
“Every time he had the opportunity to go out – because, you know, we want him to have that freedom – every time he came back home. So this was behavior that was very unlikely of him, which caused us to be worried in an instant,” said his niece, Jessica Funtanilla-Pagtulingan.
Tragically, Pagtulingan’s body was found on Tuesday, Aug. 19, in Kailua.
His niece says the Silver Alert program — which is still not operational — might’ve helped find her uncle before it was too late.
“To have something besides the Amber Alert that focuses on kids, I think our elderly, our kupuna, is just as important,” she said.
Silver Alerts are supposed to be sent out when someone 65 years old or older — as well as adults with developmental disabilities goes missing. The program was supposed to go live in July 2024, and the Department of Law Enforcement cites leadership challenges for the delay.
“The dilemma we’re currently in is that on three of the counties, there are interim police chiefs; they are still looking for full-time chief of police,” said Ernest Robello, DLE deputy director of administration.
Silver Alerts will be sent out by the State DLE, but County police departments are the ones responsible for sending information to State officials that is then put in the alert.
“There’s a little frustration, a little disappointment, only in that we are trying to get this done as quickly as possible,” Robello said. “But there’s a lot of challenges to this.”
Advocates for the Silver Alert said time is of the essence.
“Launching this as soon as possible is really going to be key in preventing future incidents that could be prevented,” said Alzheimer’s Association Public Policy and Advocacy director Coby Chock. “And we believe that the way DLE has it set up with the County police departments is a good route to go in, allowing the counties who are at the ground level the ability to determine what the best course of action is in finding these individuals.”
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KHON2 is waiting to hear from each of the four County police departments on a timeline for when they will be ready to officially launch the program.