The parents of a former MU student are seeking help outside of the Foristell Police Department for finding their son who has been missing since mid-December.
Gene and Nellie Coppola said the Wright City and Warrenton police departments helped with the investigation initially, but are reluctant to continue its efforts, because Nick Coppola is not wanted for any felonies.
“We haven’t gotten a whole lot of cooperation from the police department,” Gene Coppola said. “It’s not that we haven’t gotten any, though. Because of the fact that there’s not a felony (warrant) out for Nick, they’re really reluctant to help us.”
The couple said they have found no new details or leads concerning their son’s disappearance in the month they and the rest of their family have been searching.
But they also said they are not giving up.
The family has created a website, helpfindnick.com, where anyone can donate funds to aid the search. All of the donations will help the family hire a Maryland private investigator for the case, who will handle the investigating the police are hesitant to do. This includes phone records, or anything else requiring a subpoena, the parents said.
“It’s going to be quite pricy for us, so anyone that wants to help with this task will be greatly appreciated,” Gene Coppola said.
In the case that Nick is found, these funds will benefit another cause.
“If by some chance Nick would walk in the door tomorrow, all of that money would go to a missing adult fund,” Nellie Coppola said. “The money wouldn’t go to us.”
Columbia Police Department spokeswoman Jill Wieneke said the Foristell Police Department and Coppola’s parents asked CPD to check Coppola’s Columbia apartment. When officers looked, Coppola and his car were not present. Officers did not go inside to look for more evidence.
Gene Coppola said he and his brother distributed some flyers around MU’s campus, posting several on the blue-light emergency phones. He also said his son is on the highway patrol’s missing persons list.
Missouri Missing Executive Director Ra’Vae Edwards said Coppola’s cousin contacted her looking for guidance, and other family members contacted another board member. Although they only provided the family with advice, Missouri Missing is an organization that works with families of missing people. They advocate for media attention and distribute flyers and buttons.
“They need to do anything and everything they can to keep his face out there in the media,” Edwards said. “You don’t ever think this is going to happen to you, but when it does, you’re completely at a loss on what to do. There are a lot of people who have missing family members, but in the grand scheme of things, there’s not that many. It’s not something you can prepare for.”
She stressed the importance that Coppola’s family continues to advocate to get his face on television, in newspapers and magazines.
“You never know when the right person is going to see his face,” Edwards said.
The website, which the parents said is live, but still under construction, has contact information for the family members, if anyone does have any leads or information on the case. The Foristell Police Department could not be reached for comment.
**Correction:** _Gene Coppola said he incorrectly named the Foristell Police Department in the following:_
_“Gene and Nellie Coppola said the Foristell Police Department, the responding law enforcement agency, helped with the investigation initially, but is reluctant to continue its efforts, because Nick Coppola is not wanted for any felonies.”_
_He said he meant to say the Wright City and Warrenton police departments have been reluctant to help. In fact, he said Chief Douglas Johnson and the Foristell Police Department have been extremely helpful in the search for their son. It has been corrected in the article above._