Errol Whyte, of Stamford, was last seen leaving his son's house in Bridgeport around
6:30 p.m Thursday. Nick Whyte said his dad was headed home to his apartment but never made it.
Nick Whyte was on his way to work in Stamford later that night when he saw his dad's red 2002 Ford Explorer pulled over on I-95 south in Westport between exits 18 and 17.
"So I just slow down, and there was no sign of him. I went to Stamford, stopped by his house. Nothing. I call his phone a few times. Nothing at all. Got me worried a little bit, you know," Nick Whyte told News 12.
Nick Whyte said he later returned to the SUV and found it unlocked. What he found inside was even more unsettling, promting him to call Stamford police.
"His car was up on 95 pretty much abandoned with keys in the car, with his wallet, credit cards—no cash, though, and his driver's license was missing," said Capt. Diedrich Hohn.
The set of keys didn't contain a car key, though, according to Hohn. He said the SUV didn't have any apparent damage and likely didn't run out of gas since there was a gas receipt in it from the day before.
"It's just not normal for someone to pull over and walk off," Hohn said.
Hohn told News 12 the 63-year-old didn't have any type of dementia or health issues, and calls to area hospitals came up empty. Police also checked his apartment and found no signs of a struggle. The landlord said Errol Whyte had been a stable, dependable tenant for 20 years.
Officers Monday afternoon combed through the woods and service roads along the stretch of I-95 where the SUV was found empty.
"We're looking at all avenues. He could've been clipped by a car getting out and possibly gotten into the wooded area," Hohn explained. "We do know he worked for Uber Eats and Uber. We're also checking with them to see if he possibly picked up a fare, you know, at the last minute, and maybe something happened with that."
For Nick Whyte, the past few days have been unbearable.
"It's probably like the hardest thing I ever had to do because normally we talk at least once per day or so. You know, check on each other, make sure everybody's good," Nick Whyte said. "I just want to know what's going on 'cause I'm confused, you know? My mind is all over the place. I don't know what to think right now."
Errol Whyte is described as a Black man, approximately 6'01" and 220 lbs. He was last seen wearing a black collared jacket, white long-sleeve button-up shirt, khaki pants, a black fedora and black shoes.
Police want to speak to anyone with information on his whereabouts or anyone who saw any activity with his vehicle on I-95 between 6:30 p.m. on Thursday and 4:30 a.m. on Friday. Contact investigators Robert Daly or James Muhlbauer at 203-977-4639 or the Stamford Police Dept. front desk at 203-977-4958.