Since the Bay Area Reporter published the below article on Wednesday, November 23, Gabriel Flores, a gay San Francisco man, was found safe, his friends said.
Flores, 44, was reported missing by his friends after he was last heard from November 15.
On Sunday, November 27, Dawn Penich-Thacker, a friend of Flores', wrote in an email that he had been found.
"Thanks to all of the information spread throughout the community, Gabriel was indeed spotted and is safe, getting medical attention and will be OK," Penich-Thacker wrote. "I want to say that the community, and especially folks in the Castro and Noe Valley areas, were wonderful about letting us put up fliers, sharing information, and sending in tips."
In the original story, Flores' friends were mystified by a man Flores referred to as "Joe" in a text message.
Penich-Thacker wrote in the initial email to the B.A.R.: "He texted us that 'Joe is watching all the Best Picture movies [from the Academy Awards] in order. He hasn't watched anything from the 90s. I can't imagine watching from before 1970. I hope I made a friend.'"
That mystery has now been solved, Penich-Thacker wrote November 17.
"As a follow up to your initial story, the mysterious 'Joe' mentioned is local musician and karaoke host Joe Wicht, who was incredibly gracious about recognizing himself in your first story and reaching out to share info about the night Gabriel attended his karaoke gig," Penich-Thacker wrote. "This experience is a testament to what is possible when people come together to care for one another and the importance of checking in on those you love. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for being part of that effort."
The original story follows.
Worried friends are searching for a missing gay San Francisco man, last heard from over a week ago.
Gabriel Flores, whom friends describe as being 44 years old, Latino, 5 feet 4 inches tall, 160 pounds, with dark brown but graying hair shaved on the sides, and tattoos and a freckled nose, was last identified through Instagram posts as being at Club Oasis, a popular drag and cabaret bar in the South of Market neighborhood, Tuesday, November 15.
According to the San Francisco Police Department, Flores was last seen leaving his home on Tuesday, November 15, "at approximately 7:30 p.m."
Flores, who lives in Noe Valley, has neither been seen nor heard from since. The last message friends received implied that he had met someone.
"The one thing we desperately need tips on is this: Gabe is almost always alone. He is not dating anyone nor does he have a solid friend group in the city, so folks would think of him as a very solo individual," friend Dawn Penich-Thacker wrote in an email to the Bay Area Reporter. "BUT the night before he disappeared, he texted us that 'Joe is watching all the Best Picture movies [from the Academy Awards] in order. He hasn't watched anything from the 90s. I can't imagine watching from before 1970. I hope I made a friend.'"
Flores' friends do not know who Joe is, nor do they know his last name, they said. The text was sent out the night before Flores apparently went missing.
"We know from Gabe's Clipper card that he was out very late (3:40 a.m.) Monday night/Tuesday morning so this Joe watching all the Best Pictures may have info no one else has," added Penich-Thacker.
Flores' apparent disappearance has alarmed friends back in Arizona, where he is from, and who have arrived in San Francisco to conduct their own search for him. Flores' roommate, from whom he rents a room, does not know Flores very well, but allowed them to search the missing man's quarters where they found his wallet containing identification as well as bank and insurance cards; his passport; and work and personal laptops, a tablet, and cellphones, including his personal phone, stated Flores' friend Lindsay Love, in an email to the B.A.R.
"His roommate, who is an elderly man he rents a room from, heard him come home and knock over something in the bathroom," said Love. "He then heard someone, who he believed to be Gabe, say something to the effect of 'I'll clean it up.' Then he left ... His keys were found in the home as well. It seems a bit unusual for him to leave all electronics, keys, and identifying information at home."
A call to Flores' employer, ACCO Engineering Systems, was not immediately returned.
Friends also found receipts from a number of area LGBTQ bars Flores likes to frequent: Lookout, Hi Tops, and The Edge, as well as Club Oasis. With the aid of the receipts they found in his room, Flores' friends have been visiting bars, as well as stores, and asking employees and others if they've seen him. However, so far, no one Flores' friends have spoken to has.
Oasis owner D'Arcy Drollinger did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.
Penich-Thacker, a childhood friend from their days growing up together in Mesa, Arizona, added that Flores moved to San Francisco in 2019.
"He has tickets for the SF Gay [Men's Chorus] next week and he loves it here," she wrote in her email.
If people have information about Flores' whereabouts, they can call SPFD at (415) 553-0123, or the SFPD Tip Line at 415-575-4444, or text a tip to TIP411 and begin the text message with SFPD.
More information about Flores can be viewed at Linktree, where his friends have posted videos to help their search.
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