A 16-year-old Monroe boy has been missing for nearly two months, even as investigators say they have picked up a possible lead on his location. Bentley Burhans was reported missing on September 11, and he remained missing as of this week.
According to WCCB Charlotte, investigators have received information suggesting Bentley might currently be in the Charlotte area, and Monroe Police are asking the public to help locate him. The station reports that he may also be traveling toward Morganton or Asheville. Monroe Police Department has urged anyone with information to contact the department immediately.
The case has dragged on for weeks with few public updates. A month after Bentley went missing, The Enquirer-Journal reported that he was still unaccounted for. A family member told the paper that Bentley went missing on September 11 and that he was possibly traveling toward Morganton and Asheville — the same two cities investigators are still naming in connection with his whereabouts.
Mother Says Teen Has Checked In
In an October 1 email to the Enquirer-Journal, Monroe Police said Bentley's biological mother had been in contact with him and that he told her he was okay. Police also said at the time that Bentley was believed to have left alone, according to the same report. Those details offer some reassurance, but they have not been enough to close the case or pin down his exact location.
The department told the paper it was still missing Bentley but could not confirm that he had been kidnapped. That distinction has left the case in an uncertain middle ground — not a confirmed abduction, but also not a resolved whereabouts situation nearly two months on.
How To Help
Anyone with information about Bentley's whereabouts is asked to contact Monroe Police. The Enquirer-Journal lists the non-emergency number for Monroe's 911 Dispatch Center, (704) 289-1591, as a point of contact for tips.
Monroe's case fits into a much larger pattern tracked at the national level. The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children handled nearly 30,000 cases in 2024 alone, with more than 1,200 of them from North Carolina, according to WXII. The organization has assisted families and law enforcement with nearly half a million missing-child cases since it opened its doors in 1984, the station reported.
For now, Bentley Burhans remains missing, and the specifics of why he left and where he has been since mid-September are still unresolved. Monroe Police continue to ask residents in the Charlotte, Morganton, and Asheville areas to keep an eye out and report any information they may have.
