Search crew with dog finds missing 63-year-old Bethel Park man

BETHEL PARK, Pa. — A man who had been missing under suspicious circumstances was found Thursday, authorities said.

Bethel Park police said Vincent Balsamo, 63, was last heard from on Monday around 10 p.m. at his home at the Lindenbrook Apartments on Castle Drive in Bethel Park.%

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A search of the area was being conducted Wednesday evening by the Bethel Park Police Department, the Bethel Park Fire Department, the South Park Township police and fire departments, and the Peters Township police and fire departments.

Police confirmed to Channel 11 News that a volunteer search group with a dog found Balsamo near the Montour Trail.

Melanie Culley, who works with Canine Aided Emergency Search and Rescue, or CAESAR, said Billy, a 3-year-old yellow Lab, found Balsamo nearly 100 yards off the trial in a heavily wooded area in a matter of minutes.

“I don't even think it was 15 minutes,” Culley said. “He laid down, and the guy raised his arms. He had some blood on him. That's probably what (Billy) hit on, being a rescue dog, was the dried blood because (Balsamo) had been out here for a while."

Police said Balsamo was in medical distress and couldn’t even speak when he was found. Officers said they’re not sure Balsamo would have survived much longer if Billy hadn’t found him so quickly.

“It's all the hard work we put in. It's worth it,” Culley said.

Police initially said they thought Balsamo may have been in danger after finding his apartment locked and the bedroom window busted out.

“There was personal property of his that normally one would take with them was still on scene,” Bethel Park Police Chief Tim O’Connor said. “That led us, along with some other factors, to believe he may be in danger.”

Authorities said they believe Balsamo, for unknown reasons, frantically went out the window and failed to return.

Balsamo was taken to a hospital and is expected to make a full recovery, police said.

Cox Media Group