Yemeni Americans gather to spread awareness about Almasmari’s disappearance before he was found

WARREN — On a seemingly fateful Tuesday afternoon, Mossa Almasmari of Hamtramck left his class at Macomb Community College and went missing for a week.

He was a good kid by all accounts — a devout Muslim, a bit introverted, quiet and studious.

Almasmari’s family and friends held rallies seeking help to locate him. They started a media campaign and a hashtag on Twitter.

The speculations were many. Maybe he was kidnapped in a hate-motivated attack. Perhaps he veered toward extremism. Some Hamtramck community members even thought he may have been abducted by the authorities.

Almasmari went missing on March 29. He was found on the evening of April 5, safe and in good health. The family and investigators are coy about revealing the circumstances that led to his disappearance. But what we do know is that there was no foul play in the ordeal. He is not facing any legal issues.

The 20-year-old Yemeni American student had picked up and left — voluntarily. His whereabouts are not a matter of public record, but the fact that the investigation is closed without charges indicates that he chose to abandon his surroundings without telling his family.

After Almasmari was found, two Hamtramck residents told The Arab American News that the student had been in the custody of the FBI during the time he was missing. But family attorney Mohamad Abdrabboh was quick to quash that rumor.

“Absolutely not,” Abdrabboh said about the validity of that allegation.

On the contrary, it was FBI agents who tracked and found Almasmari after taking part in the investigation at his family’s request, according to Abdrabboh.

“Tuesday evening, the FBI were able to locate Mossa and confirm his identity,” Abdrabboh said. “For privacy reasons, that’s all the information that we have and that information was passed to the family through me. That’s the truth.”

The attorney added that Almasmari is not the subject of an investigation.

“He was not even close to being arrested,” he said. “It was a search mission for an adult who went missing. It ended well.”

An FBI source told The Arab American News that Almasmari has not waived his right to privacy; hence, the authorities cannot release the details of his disappearance or current location.

“He is alive and well and fine,” Abdrabboh said. “The case is actually closed.”

The attorney refused to comment on whether Almasmari left voluntarily.

He thanked the FBI agents, who “dedicated around the clock resources” to find Almasmari.

Hours before Almasmari was found, more than 100 Hamtramck residents and activists gathered at Macomb Community College to spread awareness about his case.

Hamtramck Councilman Saad Almasmari, a distant cousin of the missing student, said he had a good reputation in the community.

“He was not involved in anything suspicious,” the councilman said.

A friend of Mossa Almasmari, who wished not to be identified, described the student as shy and reserved. Almasmari had disconnected his social media account a few months ago, he added.

But the friend reiterated that Almasmari is friendly.

At the campus gathering, supporters held photos of Almasmari. As depicted in the pictures, he wears casual clothes, sports a shabby beard and has dark un-styled hair. He looks like a normal college kid.

While the Almasmari ordeal came to a happy conclusion, not all disappearances do.

Earlier this year, Sajjad Almayali, a 24-year-old Iraqi American from Dearborn, went missing at Belle Isle. He was later found dead in the Detroit River.

Dr. Hoda Amine, a Dearborn-based psychologist, stressed the importance of dialogue within families to prevent the alienation of children.

Amine also urged immigrant parents to recognize that their children are growing in a different time, place and culture.