Elmhurst Missing Man: Zuck Fan Abandons Search

ELMHURST, IL — Jake Cefolia, the United Airlines executive from Elmhurst, remains missing nearly a month after police say he was last seen. It's been more than two weeks since the case received a burst of Chicago media attention, then silence.

The Elmhurst Police Department, which is leading the investigation, has yet to issue an announcement in the case or release Cefolia's photo. Last week, the police confirmed through an email to Patch that Cefolia had been under criminal investigation before he disappeared. No other details were given.

Then there's that Facebook page — "Please help find Jake Cefolia." Last week, Elmhurst Patch reported the page was created by a Florida man, John Wynne, shortly after the case appeared in the news. He never met Cefolia, but said he created the page for his boss, Zuck. Who? That would be Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, he told Patch in a Facebook message. "Zuck is in charge of the universe," he said.

The day after Patch published a story about Wynne, he changed his Facebook name to "Wyn Junior." And he departed as administrator of the page and left the group entirely. The number of members plunged by 600 to 1,100.

A competing page that formed shortly before the Patch story, "The Disappearance of Jake Cefolia," had a little more than 100 members at the time. Now, it has drawn more than 1,200.

The "Please help find Jake Cefolia" page has two rules: "Each must respect our universe leader Zuck" and "You must be peaceful, positive & nice." No one is administrator now.

Asked Wednesday why he left the group, Wynne wrote, "Zuck deserves more respect." Just last week, he took a video of himself saying that he and Zuck believed Cefolia was still alive, and "we're going to do what we can" to find Cefolia and clear his name.

A major search for Cefolia took place Wednesday at Waterfall Glen Forest Preserve in Lemont, where authorities say his car was found. He was last seen Aug. 6, according to reports.

Surveillance footage of Cefolia at a gas station was recorded after he disappeared but before his car was found Aug. 8, said David Pederson, police chief for the DuPage County Forest Preserve District. The car was found on the shoulder of a road in the 2,500-acre Waterfall Glen preserve, he said.

Cefolia is senior vice president of worldwide sales at United Airlines, where he leads a workforce of 725. He has been with the company since 2007.

Here are other stories about Jake Cefolia's disappearance:

Elmhurst Police Yet To Release Photo Of Missing Man

Missing Airline Exec From Elmhurst Seen On Camera: Police

Elmhurst Missing Person Case Draws Airline's Comment

Elmhurst Missing Person: Bitter Divisions On Facebook