Friends and police look for missing Independence man

Authorities are looking for an Independence man who has not been seen for about 10 days.

Friends in southeast Missouri expected David T. Demeree to travel from his Independence home to visit them on June 13, but he never arrived.

Demeree had contacted Vern Davidson of Jackson, near Cape Girardeau, and told him that he’d found a buyer for a motorcycle that Davidson had kept for him the past two years. Demeree told Davidson that he’d made plans to meet the buyer on the way from Independence to Jackson, and the buyer then was to follow Demeree in a separate vehicle pulling a motorcycle trailer.

“In the last communication I had with Dave, he told me that he was going to do the transaction and then spend a few days with us,” Davidson said.

But neither Demeree nor the potential buyer showed up.

Davidson hopes the buyer can contact authorities and describe any recent meeting with Demeree, or that authorities can investigate possible foul play.

Davidson and Demeree both worked at a southeast Missouri postal facility before Demeree moved to Independence about two years ago. Davidson agreed to store Demeree’s Harley-Davidson motorcycle in his garage at the time.

Demeree, 49, has a medical condition that requires medication, said Tom Gentry, Independence police spokesman. Demeree drives a blue 2008 Honda Civic with Missouri plates HE9-B7H.

Anyone with information about Demeree is asked to call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS (8477), Independence police at 816-325-7777 or the Missouri State Highway Patrol at 800-877-3452.

This story was originally published June 24, 2015 at 1:36 PM with the headline "Friends and police look for missing Independence man."