“I JUST CAN’T FIGURE OUT WHAT HAPPENED TO HIM”: FATHER DESPERATELY SEARCHES FOR MISSING 30-YEAR-OLD SON AFTER HIS TRUCK IS FOUND ABANDONED

A Texas father is refusing to give up hope as the search for his missing 30-year-old son enters another agonizing week — after investigators found his work truck abandoned with nearly all of his personal belongings still inside.

Alexander Bangert has been missing from Austin since August 9.

For his father, Eugene Bangert, the disappearance has become an unbearable mystery.

“I’m at a loss. I’m just missing my son,” Eugene told FOX 7. “I believe in my heart, he’s out there somewhere, still alive.”

Alexander had been living in Austin for more than a year. He was known by his family as someone who regularly stayed in touch, making the sudden silence especially concerning.

Then investigators found his work truck.

And what was still inside only raised more questions.

HIS TRUCK WAS FOUND LESS THAN A MILE FROM HOME

On August 9, Alexander’s work truck was discovered near the Bridge at Ribelin Ranch apartment complex in northwest Austin, roughly half a mile from where he lived.

Inside were his phone, wallet, laptop and keys.

For his father, the location made little sense.

Alexander lived at the Promesa Apartments and, according to Eugene, did not appear to have friends or connections at the apartment complex where the truck was discovered.

“Why wouldn’t he just come to his own apartment complex?” Eugene questioned. “Was he scared? Was something happening that he didn’t want to come back home?”

Those questions remain unanswered.

THEN POLICE FOUND HIS HOODIE

Investigators searching around the abandoned truck discovered another potentially important clue.

Alexander’s company hoodie was found on the other side of an apartment fence.

Police believe he may have entered a nearby greenbelt around the 9900 block of McNeil Drive.

Search teams have already combed the area, but so far, Alexander has not been found.

Texas EquuSearch Search and Recovery has also joined the effort, using canines and drones while working alongside detectives.

But the search has yet to produce the breakthrough his family desperately needs.

“I THOUGHT MAYBE HE WAS SICK”

Alexander’s disappearance quickly became alarming because of how unusual the silence was.

By August 11, his employer contacted Eugene to ask whether he knew where his son was.

Eugene immediately began checking hospitals and jails, hoping there was a simple explanation.

There wasn’t.

He could not reach Alexander on his phone, and none of the searches produced answers.

The father eventually began traveling between San Antonio and Austin, distributing flyers and trying to put Alexander’s face in front of as many people as possible.

Every weekend brings another search.

Another flyer.

Another unanswered question.

POLICE DO NOT CURRENTLY SUSPECT FOUL PLAY

Despite the circumstances surrounding the disappearance, investigators have told Eugene that they do not currently suspect foul play.

That has not made the mystery any easier for his family.

Eugene says he simply cannot understand why his son would suddenly disappear and leave behind so many essential belongings.

“I just can’t figure out what happened to him,” he said. “If he was taken, if he just ran off, if somebody did something to him, I just don’t know. It’s a mystery.”

For now, there is no confirmed explanation.

Only a truck left behind.

A hoodie near a fence.

A trail leading toward a greenbelt.

And a father who refuses to believe his search is over.

“I JUST HOPE SOMEBODY SOMEWHERE SEES HIS FACE”

Alexander is described as 5 feet, 9 inches tall and approximately 168 pounds, with brown hair and hazel eyes.

His family is asking anyone who may have seen him or knows anything about his whereabouts to come forward.

The Austin Police Department can be reached at 512-974-5000, while Texas EquuSearch can be contacted at 281-309-9500.

For Eugene, the search has become more than a police investigation.

It is a father’s desperate journey to bring his son home.

“I believe in my heart, he’s out there somewhere, still alive,” Eugene said.

And until there is an answer, he says he will keep searching.