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Family of Tangipahoa Parish man missing for more than 30 days speaks out
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PONCHATULA - It’s been nearly a month since anyone last saw 43-year-old James Wood, and there has been no trace of him despite extensive search efforts by the Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff's Office. Wood's family still can't believe he is missing.
"He is a character, he always has a joke, a very hard worker, if he walked in a room you're going to know he's there, and another thing about him is that he's a bulldog, nobody was just going to take him," Crystal Burge, Wood's sister, said.
The family says their concern is not just about Woods' whereabouts, but also the search efforts by law enforcement.
"We feel like they are not taking it seriously. They are basically identifying him as a 40-year-old white male that is having a midlife crisis or something along those lines, and they are not taking this seriously as if something actually happened to him. I know my brother and I know his character, and I know he wouldn't do this to my mother," she said.
The family says they felt communication with the sheriff's office had been lacking. WBRZ reached out to the sheriff's office about the concerns, and they released this statement:
TPSO remains in communication with James Wood’s family. Our detective met in person with his mother on Thursday and spoke with other relatives regarding tips as recently as yesterday and earlier today.
The family said investigators were not letting them into Wood's mother's home. Wood was working on remodeling his mother's home around the time he went missing.
TPSO released this statement in response to the reasoning:
Detectives had advised the family that it was best to remain out of the home to preserve its status without knowing the circumstances of James’s whereabouts or condition. However, following this evening’s conversation, the family has been advised that the home will be available for their access this week.
The sheriff's office said they have not ruled out foul play in this case.
Editor's Note: In the video above, Wood's family says it was nine days before they were contacted by law enforcement about Wood's disappearance. Wood's family last spoke to him on June 21, reported him missing to law enforcement on June 25 and the TPSO sent out a missing persons notice on June 28.
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