Clearwater police still searching for Zachary Bernhardt 23 years after his disappearance
Photo courtesy: FDLE
CLEARWATER, Fla. - September 11 marks the anniversary of the day an 8-year-old boy went missing in Clearwater, and 23 years later, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) and Clearwater police are still searching for answers.
Zachary Bernhardt was reported missing just before 5 a.m. on Sept. 11, 2000, in Clearwater. He was living at the Savannah Trace Apartments with his mother, who told police she went for a walk and a swim in the middle of the night; she said when she came back, he was gone.
A photo of a young Zachary Bernhardt sits in a gold frame at his grandmother's house. FOX 13 previously spoke with Bernhardt's family.
Investigators called Zachary's disappearance suspicious. Twenty-three years later, the FDLE posting issued for his disappearance remains active and stands as the longest-running Amber Alert in the state.
On the FDLE's flyer for Zachary, who also went by "Zach," is a picture age progressed to show him at 29 years old.
They ask anyone with information concerning Zach's whereabouts to contact the Clearwater Police Department at 727-562-4200.