Gabby Petito’s Dad Joins In Search For Missing Centereach Mom

CENTEREACH, NY — The father of Gabby Petito, who started a foundation to help find missing people, has joined in the social media campaign to help locate a Long Island mom who has not been seen for about two weeks by her family.

Suffolk police say 38-year-old Melissa Molinari, a married mother of four from Centereach, has not been seen since Nov. 21 and she left her vehicle behind at her home and has no known medical issues, police said.

A friend reported her missing on Thursday, police said. Investigators are not releasing the person's name.

No further details were released.

Addressing Twitter followers on Sunday, Joseph Petito called them "amazing," thanked them for their help, and asked for help to find Molinari. "Please help bring her home safe," he wrote under the hashtags MissingPerson, TogetherWeCan, gabbypetito, and everybithelps.

Petito's daughter, Gabby, was found slain near Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming in September after going missing on a cross-country road trip with her fiancé, Brian Laundrie, who is believed to have committed suicide. He and her three other parents, including his wife, Tara, and Petito's mother, Nichole Schmidt, and step-father, Jim, started The Gabby Petito Foundation shortly after to bring awareness to the plight of families searching for their missing loved ones.

At a news conference announcing the foundation, Joseph Petito said there should be more attention on missing person cases in the media, adding, "It's not just Gabby who deserves the attention."

Petito credited followers on social media for helping law enforcement locate his daughter. Since the foundation has been started, there has been increased attention on some missing person cases that previously went cold.

Outside agencies have joined in the social media campaign. The Suffolk County Sheriff's office posted to Facebook on Tuesday also seeking help for the missing mom.

Molinari was last seen at her home on Lolly Lane, police said. She is described as white with blue eyes and red hair and stands at about 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighs about 120 pounds, according to police.

Detectives are asking anyone with information on her location to contact the 6th Squad in Selden at 631-854-8652 or to call 911.