He Traveled To Florida With Friends For Spring Break And Vanished After Supposedly Going On A Walk By Himself, But His Parents Believe There’s More To The Story

In early 2014, Reny Jose was finishing up his last semester as a mechanical engineering student at Rice University in Houston, Texas.
So, for spring break, the 21-year-old decided to take a trip to Florida with 22 other students from his school.
“March 1, my son called me and said, ‘Mom, I’m going to Panama City with 22 kids. Just for spring vacation.’ And as a mother, you know, ‘go and enjoy,’ that’s all I can say,” recalled his mother, Sherly Jose.
Only three days later, on March 4, 2014, tragedy struck when Sherly received a phone call from one of Reny’s friends and learned that her son had gone missing.
Upon receiving word of his disappearance, Reny’s mom and his father, Jose George, immediately traveled to Panama City Beach, waiting for investigators to finish looking for their son. Sadly, the search continues to this day, over 10 years later.
Reny and his friends had rented a home for one week, located on the 21000 block of Front Beach Road. He was supposedly last seen at 6:30 p.m. on March 3, walking east on Front Beach Road.
His friends reported him missing at 11:30 a.m. the following day, March 4, and investigators subsequently found some of his clothing in a trash can outside the rental home. Inside his bedroom, Reny’s laptop, wallet, and suitcase were left behind.
The garments reportedly led authorities to think that Reny may have gone swimming in the Gulf.
So, the search for him was widespread, encompassing the Gulf waters as well as the surrounding area with the assistance of ground searchers and helicopters. Witnesses were also interviewed, but no sign of Reny was ever uncovered.

Facebook – pictured above is Reny
“You’re looking at an entire division plus a few. And I know this investigation went on for weeks,” explained Bay County Sheriff’s Office Captain Jason Daffin.
“And you figure, working eight-hour days, five days a week, and us putting those kinds of resources into it, it was not a lack of manpower.”
Despite the comprehensive search efforts, Reny’s parents thought his friends held the answers to their son’s disappearance. That’s because they claimed Reny had gone on a walk by himself when he vanished, and Sherly and Jose have had doubts since the beginning.
Once Reny’s parents had traveled to Panama City Beach, they learned that at least half of their son’s friends had already left to go back to college without speaking to authorities.
According to Sherly, the timeline of events they have gotten from friends was inconclusive.
“One person is saying he went this way; one person is saying that way. It doesn’t make any sense to us. You know, it’s like… tell the truth. Whatever happened, [has] happened. Just… give us something to move on,” Sherly said.
Reny’s parents hired a private investigator who’s reportedly tried contacting the “kids” from the trip.
“They aren’t answering at all. They wouldn’t even open their mouths. They said, ‘I don’t know. I don’t know. We don’t know anything.’ That’s what they were saying,” Sherly detailed.
“Well, they were saying he was going down Front Beach Road. That’s the only thing they say; he went for a walk. That’s very unusual; he went by himself,” added Jose.
Yet, authorities stated they’ve already investigated the friends Reny was vacationing with, in addition to other leads. Police don’t believe Reny’s friends were involved in his disappearance.
“Some of the students did return to Rice University before we were able to make contact with them or speak with them. But those students were interviewed either by us, or we also had some assistance,” Captain Daffin explained.
“I believe it was from Rice University; their police there assisted in doing interviews, so everybody was interviewed, and, to my knowledge, everyone’s interviews were very consistent. There [wasn’t] anything that indicated any kind of foul play.”
Still, the exact circumstances of Reny’s disappearance remain unclear, and his parents continue looking for answers over a decade later.
Investigators have reportedly looked into potential persons of interest or leads over the last year, but they’ve hit dead ends. Even so, authorities are committed to searching for any new clues that could finally solve Reny’s case.
His parents refuse to give up hope, too, and plead for anyone with information to speak up. They’ve also created a Facebook page entitled Find Reny Jose to raise awareness.
“A long 10 years. I don’t know how we’ve been living like this; it’s horrible. Every single day, I think about it, and I don’t know what to do,” Sherly shared.
“Please. Help us. It’s been too long. 10 years. A long 10 years.”
Reny was five foot 10, weighed 185 pounds, and had black hair and brown eyes. He would be 32 years old today.
Anyone with information regarding his case is urged to contact the Bay County Sheriff’s Office at (850) 747-4700.
Sign up for Chip Chick’s newsletter and get stories like this delivered to your inbox.
More About:True Crime