Muskingum County Sheriff’s Office continues to seek two runaway teens. You can help

ZANESVILLE − Two Muskingum County teenagers are still considered missing, but are believed to be runaways in an attempt to avoid returning to their foster homes before their 18th birthdays.

Cameron D. Orr, 17, ran away from the Avondale Youth Center on Sept. 19, and Tyler E. Tom, also 17, ran away from Avondale on Dec. 6.

A Muskingum County Sheriff’s Office case filing noted Cameron is still suspected to be within Muskingum County and is being assisted by known associates to avoid law enforcement. His exact location is unknown and is still under investigation.

Tyler’s case is also under open investigation, but he is believed to be in a different state.

Information about both Cameron and Tyler has been posted on the sheriff’s office’s social media accounts to publicize their photos and disappearance. They also are listed in the Missing Child Search on the Ohio Attorney General’s website.

Muskingum County Sheriff Matt Lutz said his office has received some tips and detectives are working the cases. “We feel both of them are probably just trying to run till they’re 18, so they have a little bit more control over what they’re allowed to do.”

While Tyler and Cameron are missing children, there’s a difference in their cases compared to AMBER alerts, which are often used for child abductions. However, a case must meet certain requites before a notice can be disseminated, such as identity, description, and last known location.

“If it’s a severe missing kid, our public’s going to hear it on the AMBER alert that’s going to come across your TV,” Lutz added. “All those AMBER Alerts are disseminated, and you’re going to hear if there’s a description, that there’s a name and age, if they’re with somebody, if there’s a possible suspect.”

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“That’s probably the biggest difference between cases like Cameron’s and Tyler’s because we felt they were runaways. They intentionally left versus a child that’s been abducted. That’s the big thing,” Lutz noted.

Lutz said there are ways to remain vigilant as a community member regarding missing children or even missing adults. “There’s the old saying: ‘If you see something, say something.’ It’s the same way of just having that information to give to law enforcement so that we have a place to start when we’re doing an investigation.

“If the public sees Cameron or Tyler or they see somebody that they think has been abducted, the first thing we want them to do is dial 911. We want them to call 911 and report this to the sheriff’s office, so we can get cruisers started that way to wherever these people were being seen,” he added.

“You’re taking on a lot of responsibility if you try to approach these kids or try to intervene in any way,” he cautioned. “If you can keep a safe distance and try to track them, stay on the phone with 911 to report where they’re going. Law enforcement needs a place to start… Then we can get there, and we can take over and try to find out who this person is or try to recover them.”

Sometimes, it can be beneficial to pay attention to the surroundings or take note of something unfamiliar in a familiar setting. “People drive the same road home a lot of times. They know what fits and what doesn’t fit. If you see suspicious vehicles, if you see suspicious people walking on the street, you can always call us, and we’ll come out and check those things out,” Lutz shared.

“When we have an actual report about a live child that’s been abducted or is missing, that’s a pressing need that becomes an emergency,” Lutz said. “The whole key, though, for us, is having a starting point of who last saw that person. What was last going on in their life? What were they last wearing? Where were they supposed to be going? Do they have a phone? Who talked to them last?

“All those questions we’re going to be asking on those cases. So, depending on the age, depending on the circumstances reflects on how the investigation will go.”

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Anyone with information about Cameron, Tyler or any missing children in Muskingum County is asked to contact Detective Brad Shawger at 740-452-3637 extension 6050 or dispatch at 740-452-3037 extension 1. Tips can be left anonymously.

Shawn Digity is a reporter for the Zanesville Times Recorder. He can be emailed at sdigity@gannett.com or found on X at @ShawnDigityZTR.

This article originally appeared on Zanesville Times Recorder: Muskingum County Sheriff’s Office seeks two runaway teens