Kauai police search for missing Nebraska man suspended

LIHUE — Police in Hawaii have suspended searches for a Nebraska man whose family reported him missing after he failed to return home from a hiking and camping trip.

Samuel Joseph Martinez, 23, was studying microbiology at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln before he flew to the Hawaiian island of Kauai on May 12 with plans to spend nearly two weeks hiking and camping.

The Kauai Police Department searched areas where Martinez may have hiked, but nothing has been found, a spokesperson told The Garden Island.

His family reported him missing to police in Lincoln, Nebraska, on May 27 after he missed his flight back home two days earlier.

Land and air search efforts began May 30, primarily focusing on Kokee and Waimea state parks.

Volunteers have also helped with the search.

There has been no positive sighting of Martinez since May 14, his father Ted Martinez said in a text to the newspaper earlier this week.

“Please keep Samuel in your prayers, and with these kind people as they search,” he said.