Bangor Police Ask for the Public's Help in Search for Missing Man

Bangor Police and DEEMI Search and Rescue are asking for the public's help in their quest to find a missing Dorothea Dix patient.

Who Is Graham Lacher?

Graham Lacher was a patient at the psychiatric hospital when he disappeared earlier this month. Police and others have been looking for him ever since. Graham Lacher is a white male, 5'11", about 265 pounds, with brown hair, and blue eyes. He was last seen wearing a gray jacket, gray/green Carhartt pants, and an orange knit hat. Officials say he suffers from mental illness and tends to shy away from people.

Where Have Officials Been Searching for Him?

Bangor Police have released more details about the search and sightings of him since he disappeared:

June 6 - Sergeant Wade Betters says Bangor Police were notified by the staff at Dorothea Dix at approximately 4:41 pm that a patient, 37-year-old Graham Lacher, had left the property on foot, crossing the soccer fields, headed in the direction of Mt. Hope Avenue. That notification came about 23 minutes after the last sighting of Lacher. Several officers searched the area and brought in a police K9, in an attempt to locate his scent. By 8:30, with no sign of him, Lacher was entered into the system as a missing person. In addition, a Silver Alert was requested since Lacher has some mental health challenges. That alert went out at 10 p.m.

June 7 - At approximately 3:50 a.m. two motorists traveling on I-95 near the Bangor Mall told police they saw a man walking on the highway, headed northbound towards Hogan Road. Officials say the description they gave was consistent with Lacher. Officers and a State Police Trooper responded and searched the area but, once again, there was no sign of him. Since this sighting, police have learned that Lacher was seen on a surveillance camera near the dead-end of Sylvan Road, near the highway, at 6:04 pm on June 6th, approximately 2 hours after he fled the hospital grounds.

June 7 - Based on this possible sighting of Lacher on the interstate, volunteers from the Down East Emergency Medicine Institute (DEEMI) began searching in Orono. When they were unable to find any evidence that Lacher had traveled that far north, they turned their attention back to the Bangor Mall area, and that search has been ongoing ever since. Members of the Maine Warden Service and Penobscot County Sheriff's Office have aided in the search which, to date, has turned up no sign of Graham Lacher.

June 10 and June 15 - Customs and Border Protection Agents flew a helicopter over the search areas. This effort has also included the use of drones and ground searches. Maps have been released, showing searched areas in red, and officials say the search has now spread to areas outside those regions.

Bangor Police Department