Matthew Grant reported safe and with family Dec. 13

Details have not been released, but reports out of Monroe County, New York say that Matthew Grant has been found safe and has been reunited with his family. In a breaking story Wednesday evening, after press time at the Advance/Outlook, the great news came to light. 

According to a story published in the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle this evening (Dec. 13, 2023), the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department were not releasing details of Grant’s whereabouts or how he was found. 

“Thank you to all of the deputies and investigators who worked so tenaciously coordinating with multiple agencies, following up leads, using technology, and working with the family to locate Matthew,” the Sheriff’s Office said. “We appreciate our partnership with the media who helped spread awareness and our efforts to reunite him with his family.” 

“Missing RIT student Matthew Grant has been found and is safe. His family has posted information on social media thanking everyone for aiding in the search for their son, who went missing on Nov. 20 from Henrietta, N.Y. Throughout this ordeal, the care, encouragement and assistance of this campus has been unwavering in the effort to aid in the search. I want to thank the RIT community for their steadfast support in locating Matthew,” said Sandra Johnson Senior Vice President, Student Affairs at RIT.

The Facebook site “Find Matthew Grant” (https://www.facebook.com/groups/findmatthewgrant) posted this note Wednesday Dec. 13 around 6 p.m., attributed to Facebook user “Kayla Sue”:
MATTHEW GRANT HAS BEEN FOUND SAFE & IS RE-UNITED WITH HIS FAMILY!! Praise be to God!! Matthew’s vehicle was found by an officer late last night, the officer called in the plate number and realized it belonged to a missing person and acted immed iately. We are forever grateful. For the privacy of Matthew and his family we ask that you refrain from flooding us with questions and speculations at this time, we will not be responding. We also ask if you personally know and love Matthew and family you do not flood their phones with messages. They feel your love. ❤️❤️❤️
We have turned the commenting feature back on this post! We believe that each of you deserve the world and wish there was someway we could express our gratitude to you all individually. In a time of crisis the community and beyond stepped up and treated our family like it was their own, you wrapped your arms around us while we navigated uncharted territory and YOU helped us bring him home. You spent your own valuable time, efforts and energy helping us and together we get to celebrate in this miracle. THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! GOD IS GOOD, ALL THE TIME.
 

Matthew, the son of Mark and Nancy Grant, was one of the best wrestlers to ever compete for Onaway High School, but he equaled that in the classroom as one of the top students of the Class of 2020, and parlayed that into an opportunity to pursue an engineering degree and to continue wrestling at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT).  

According to MCSD public information officer, Brendan Hurley, the last solid lead came from the footage at the Loves Travel Stop in Seneca County Nov. 21 at 12:45 a.m.

“At that point, we don’t think he was in any danger,” said Hurley. “The problem is, where did he go after that.

“He is not where he is supposed to be, which is concerning in itself, but you have the other side where he is 22, 23, and he can leave if he wants to, so tracking him down is difficult because we cannot access certain things, unless we have reason to believe he is in danger.” 

John Bulmer has been posting updates on the Find Matthew Grant! (FMG) Facebook site. He is the founder and publisher of the Adirondack Mountain News and a public information officer (PIO) for Adirondack Mountain Rescue. He said there has been little to no new information coming from the MCSD.

“I can look at that a few different ways, in a very speculative manner, but I don’t know what to make of it,” said Bulmer in a phone interview Tuesday. “Either they don’t have information, or they do, and they are not releasing publicly, or there is something wrong here…there is a lot going on in New York state, so I cannot fault them for not providing daily updates, but they may not have anything.”

Bulmer has been writing pieces and posting them on the site, to provide clarity to a case that has been clouded with lots of social media disinformation.

In Bulmer’s post Monday, with his background in search and rescue, he explains what happens when someone has not been located in a reasonable amount of time. 

“In cases where an individual has bee

n missing for an extended period, typically three weeks or more, law enforcement agencies intensify their efforts to locate the person, employing strategies tailored to the circumstances, jurisdiction, and available resources,” said Bulmer. “Law enforcement initiates a thorough review of the initial investigation, scrutinizing leads, witness statements, and evidence gathered in the first few weeks.”

In response to new leads or specific areas of interest, law enforcement conducts additional searches, leveraging support from search and rescue teams, drones, or other specialized resources.