Sanford police seek missing endangered 18-year-old Mark A. Nelson

Sanford police are asking residents to watch for Mark A. Nelson, 18, who was last seen in the 2700 block of South Orlando Drive and is believed to be traveling on foot. Investigators said Nelson is considered endangered, and anyone who spots him or knows where he may be should contact the Sanford Police Department right away.

Police said Nelson was last seen Sunday, June 7, in Sanford. WESH 2 News reported he was wearing red shorts with an Aztec design and a black shirt with an American Sign Language design, and investigators said it was unknown whether he was wearing shoes. WFTV reported Nelson is about 5 feet, 10 inches tall, weighs about 170 pounds, has short brown hair and brown eyes, and has a semicolon tattoo on his left wrist and a hand tattoo on his right forearm.

The search area is not limited to Sanford. Police said Nelson has been known to travel between Sanford and Wesley Chapel, which means residents, drivers and business owners in both areas may be able to help if they see someone matching his description. The detail matters because officers are not only looking for a missing teen, but trying to locate him quickly enough to check on his safety and where he has been since he was last seen.

WESH and WFTV reported that Sanford police consider Nelson endangered because of a mental health diagnosis. That designation makes the case more urgent than a routine missing-person report, and it helps explain why police are treating every verified sighting as important. Florida’s Missing Endangered Persons Information Clearinghouse serves as the state’s central repository for that type of case, which is one reason these alerts are pushed into the public quickly.

The Sanford Police Department’s Public Information Office handles media and public updates, and the department’s records division is in the Public Safety Building at 815 Historic Goldsboro Blvd. in Sanford. Anyone with information about Nelson’s whereabouts should contact Sanford police without delay.