Home Local News Rescue crews search for missing Ellerbe man

Rescue crews search for missing Ellerbe man

ELLERBE – First responders from multiple counties are searching for a man last seen nearly a month ago.
 
With a staging area set up at Ellerbe Middle School, crews set off at 10 a.m. looking for 51-year-old Joseph Michael Blake, who legally changed his name to Sol Vain Zivek, according to Maj. Jay Childers with the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office. 
 
Zivek, who lived on E. Main Street, is 5 feet, 10 inches tall and weighs about 160 pounds. He was last seen March 26 and last heard from March 29 via text message.
 
Childers said Zivek’s father filed a missing persons report on Friday.
 
Investigators went to his home to find the door unlocked, however nothing seemed out of place, Childers said. They also began checking his phone and bank records.
 
Zivek’s girlfriend died earlier this year, and investigators say he has been very emotional since.
 
He does not have a vehicle, so would be walking or asking for a ride. 
 
Seven teams, including one on four-wheelers, started around 9 a.m. searching around his home and nearby bodies of water. 
 
The intial missions resulted in few clues, though one group brought back several Modelo beer cans.
 
Those involved in the operation are from the sheriff’s office, Richmond County Emergency Services, Ellerbe Fire Department, Ellerbe Rescue Squad, Cordova Fire and Rescue, Hamlet Fire and Rescue, Pineland Search and Rescue, N.C. Emergency Management, Montgomery County Emergency Management, Anson County Emergency Services, Ansonville Fire Department, Aberdeen Fire Department, Moore County Public Safety, Kannapolis Fire Department and the American Red Cross.
 
Anyone with information is encouraged to call the sheriff’s office at 910-895-3232 or 911.
 
 



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Managing Editor William R. Toler is an award-winning writer and photographer with experience in print, television and online media.