A 15-year-old Oakland boy with autism has been missing, and police are asking the public for help finding him. Santos Pablo Calmo is described by police as an at-risk missing person because of his age.
As reported by KRON4, police describe Calmo as Hispanic, standing 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighing 130 pounds, with brown eyes and a black buzzcut. He was last seen wearing a white t-shirt, blue jeans, black shoes, and a black and white hat.
Police said Calmo has been diagnosed with autism, a detail that has driven the Oakland Police Department's public appeal for information. The department's official missing-person release went out on Saturday, September 19, 2026, per a statement shared on the Oakland Police Department's Facebook page.
Why Autism Diagnoses Raise the Stakes in Searches
Cases involving missing autistic youth carry an elevated sense of urgency for a specific reason: wandering, also known as elopement, is common among children on the spectrum. Nearly half of children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder wander or elope from safe environments, according to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. The organization's data from 2025 shows that at least 98 missing autistic children and young adults were recovered deceased, and 88% drowned.
Safety organizations point to sensory overload or a fixation on a specific environment as common triggers for elopement.
California law gives agencies a broader tool than the traditional Silver Alert framework typically associated with seniors. Under Government Code Section 8594.10, law enforcement can request a Silver Alert not just for people 65 and older, but for developmentally disabled or cognitively impaired missing persons of any age determined to be in danger, according to the California Highway Patrol. Silver Alerts provide immediate information to the public.
A Pattern of Similar Searches in the Region
Calmo's case echoes other recent local searches for missing youth on the autism spectrum. Last September, Oakland police issued a public search alert for 10-year-old Ezekiel Williams, a nonverbal child on the spectrum who went missing in the city, as Hoodline previously reported. Earlier this month, Hoodline also covered a public appeal for an 18-year-old autistic youth reported missing in nearby Contra Costa County.
Alameda County agencies submitted 1,605 missing children reports to the California Department of Justice in 2025, with 594 juveniles located and 927 returned, according to state data compiled by the California Department of Justice. Cases like Calmo's are handled by the Oakland Police Department's Missing Persons Unit, a specialized reactive unit within the department's Special Victims Section that also manages runaway and parental abduction cases, per city documentation on file with the City of Oakland.
That unit is operating amid a broader staffing crunch. As of March, the Oakland Police Department had approximately 615 sworn officers, down 71 from early 2025 and 63 below its authorized budget allocation, according to CBS News. Department leadership has pointed to officer shortages as a driver of mandatory overtime and heavier case burdens across units.
How to Help
Anyone with information about Santos Pablo Calmo's whereabouts is asked to contact the Oakland Police Department. Investigators have not released additional details about the circumstances surrounding his disappearance.
