Sacramento County sheriff’s deputies are asking the public for help finding 67-year-old Roxanne Lang, who was last seen Wednesday morning and is considered at risk because she has dementia. Lang was last spotted around 7 a.m. on the 3300 block of Mather Field Road, and she was using a black wheelchair at the time.
According to the Sacramento Sheriff
, deputies describe Lang as about 5 feet tall and 130 pounds, with black hair worn in a ponytail and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing a gray hoodie and blue jeans. The sheriff’s office said she is known to frequent a 76 gas station and Mather Sports Park in the area, two spots investigators are highlighting as deputies try to retrace her steps.
Why the Disappearance Wasn’t Reported Right Away
The sheriff’s office said the reporting party did not initially report Lang missing, noting that she reportedly leaves on occasion.
Lang has dementia and is considered an at-risk missing person. She was last seen in a wheelchair. The designation typically speeds up search efforts for vulnerable adults who may be unable to find their way back or seek help on their own.
California’s Silver Alert is a separate statewide public-notification program, created by a 2012 law. A person’s age or cognitive impairment alone does not automatically trigger one: state criteria also require law enforcement to use available local resources, find unexplained or suspicious circumstances, determine the person is in danger and have information that could aid recovery. The investigating agency works with the California Highway Patrol on alert activation.
Dementia-related wandering is a recognized safety risk: the Alzheimer’s Association says six in 10 people living with dementia will wander at least once, and it can happen at any stage. The group advises beginning a search immediately and calling 911 if the person is not found within 15 minutes; it says many people who wander are found within 1.5 miles of where they disappeared.
How to Help
Anyone with information on Lang’s whereabouts is asked to call the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office’s non-emergency line at 916-874-5115. The agency has not released additional updates on the search since its initial appeal for public help.
