BELLA VISTA, Ark. — A Silver Alert is still issued for a woman in Bella Vista who went missing last Thursday.
Barbara Doyle, 74, was admitted to Brookfield Assisted Living at 11 a.m. on Thursday (Aug. 12) and has been missing since 3 p.m. the same day.
Doyle is 5", 120 pounds and wandered off on foot from the assisted living facility.
She was last seen wearing black jeans and a grey T-shirt-like sweater with black glasses that can hang around her neck.
Representatives from the Morgan Nick Foundation came Wednesday, August 18, to meet with members of the Bella Vista Police Department and the family of missing 74-year-old Barbara Doyle to talk about the efforts in this case so far. The department says they are continuing to work diligently on this case, despite not yet having good news to provide the family.
Jack Doyle, her husband, says he checked in his wife into the facility around noon for respite care before heading to a family function.
“Since she was on foot, and she has dementia with diminished cognitive capacity the likelihood and the practicality and her doing anything on her own other than how far she could walk is you know pretty low," said Jack Doyle.
He says he believes that someone picked her up and if so, is wanting them to contact the Bella Vista Police.
A dozen law enforcement agencies from across Arkansas have joined in the effort to help locate Doyle. In addition to the canines deployed Friday (Aug.13), police have used well as ATVs, vehicles, boats, bikes, horseback and drones to search the ground and in the water.
“We just miss her so much and we just want her home," said Chris Doyle, Barbara Doyle's son. "I love her and I just want to give her a big hug and just wrap her in that big bear hug. I just hope that that’s soon."
A private donor has now set up a $10,000 reward for information leading to the safe recovery of Barbara. The reward fund expires on Sept. 12, 2021.
Jack Doyle says he has reached out to the Fort Smith and Joplin Police to expand the search. “It’s very hard you know not knowing where she is or what condition she’s in, it’s very hard," he said.
On Monday (Aug. 23) the BVPD said Barbara is still missing and they are working to secure search warrants for some electronic devices to gather data. Police say this may help determine different people who may have been in the area when she went missing.
"This data is hefty, and we will be continuing this week on those efforts, while we continue to do ground searches as well. We are tracking down every possibility, such as she wandered farther than we originally thought and that perhaps she was picked up," the department posted on Facebook.
The Bella Vista Police requests that everyone remains aware of their surroundings. If you have any information or locate Doyle, please contact the Bella Vista Police Department at (479)-855-3771.
