Jonathon Giorgianni vanishes in southeast Houston
HOUSTON - "Maybe there's something God knows that I'm not privy to," says Crystal Lopez, standing in front of a billboard for her missing son along I-45 in southeast Houston near Park Place.
Jonathon Giorgiani was last seen in-person by family on December 31, 2021. His mother had spoken with him in the following weeks, saying he had always been a, "very loving kid. Very open with me. We'd sit on the couch and have long conversations. There wasn't anything he wouldn't share with me. We were very close."
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Their daily chats ended January 14, the day he was last seen on the 8700 block of Broadway Street in the Glenbrook Valley area of southeast Houston, several blocks from Hobby Airport.
"He was staying at his girlfriends at the time," explains Crystal, who says the two had not been dating long. "He had left for some reason. Went to go visit friends, and no one has seen him since."
The last person to speak to Jonathon was his little sister.
"She had mentioned to him, 'please make sure you're in contact with me, so I know you are ok,' and he said that he would," Crystal recalls.
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At that time, Crystal explains Jonathon was in trouble with his parents for getting arrested the week prior.
"He had a scheduled court date on January 26 and when he didn't show up for that, we knew something was wrong," Crystal says.
Jonathon lives with bipolar disorder.
"Unless you have a close family member who has that disorder, you really aren't aware of what that entails," Crystal points out. "It's very difficult to have them stay on their medication. Often they're non-compliant. When they're manic, and not sleeping, and not eating, and not thinking straight, they often do things they wouldn't normally do. It's part of the disorder. It's easy to judge unless you have a family member with that."
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Crystal says Jonathon had recently gotten off his medication. His behavior had been more erratic. But she says that alone does not seem to explain his absence.
"He's missed some important events already in our family that I know he would never miss. He loves his little sister to death, and he wasn't there for her birthday. I know he wouldn't miss her birthday for anything," Crystal says.
Jonathon lost his cell phone shortly before his disappearance. Crystal says he had a temporary phone that was only good for 30 days as he awaited the replacement. Those 30 days have long passed.
A travel nurse by trade, Crystal had been working in California when Jonathon disappeared. She admitted feeling guilty, and often wonders if she could have helped Jonathon manage his medication better had she not been away. She has come back to Houston to race against the clock before the case goes cold.
Crystal is recruiting help from members of the community, recently putting up a billboard for Jonathon near Hobby airport. Her hope lies in the hands of passing strangers.
"I think he's somewhere in southeast Houston," says Crystal. "I pray for a good outcome, but I'm not too hopeful."
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Wearing a small cross on her neck during her interview with FOX 26 anchor Kaitlin Monte, "I often question why is this happening? Why is our family going through something like this? I just have to trust God's plan," Crystal says. "I know my son suffered a lot with his condition. I keep that in mind and think: is this God's way of answering his prayers? My son would always cry and ask me 'mom, why do I have this? Why do I have to be like this?' Everything was difficult for him."
Jonathon's family has received concerning tips about where her son may be, including warnings to beware of their own safety amid their search. Despite concern for their safety, and the weight of their pain, they haven't stopped looking.
"You have to get up and carry on. I have a little one I have to take care of, so you don't have a choice. You don't have a choice. You have to be strong. And, I want answers. I want to find out what happened to him," Crystal says.
Crystal opened up about the tips she's received about Jonathon's fate in the FOX 26 streaming show The Missing: LIVE, which you can watch here.
Do you know what happened to Jonathon Giorgiani? Call in a tip to the Texas Center for the Missing or to the Houston Police Department Missing Persons Unit at 832-394-1840. You can also call the Houston Police Department Patrol at 713-844-3131. Mention case number 116780-22.
Follow the case on the family's official Facebook page, here.