Authorities Search for Missing Pascagoula Teen

A note and a vehicle are all that’s left behind from a Jackson County student who went missing Friday night.
Seventeen-year-old Dawson Hellar was last seen at Resurrection Catholic High School. News 25’s Gina Tomlinson spoke to the principal and Dawson’s family, as they work together to find the teenager.
Surveillance video was the last to catch a glimpse of 17-year-old Dawson Hellar, a junior at Resurrection Catholic High School. He has been missing since Friday night.
Principal Noah Hamilton is left wondering why the only trace of Dawson’s disappearance is a note found in his vehicle. “He was a filmer for the football team and would come back after the game and help load that onto their computer system.”
In video, Dawson’s car is seen leaving after the game Friday night. He left around the same time as the football coaches, around 10:15 p.m. “That’s the last time we pick him on camera. His car was located in the parking lot behind our gymnasium,” said Hamilton.
Hamilton tells News 25 that the note left in Dawson’s car indicated he was leaving, but authorities don’t think he had any plans to commit self-harm. Lt. Doug Adams with Pascagoula PD said, “We’re not getting much input that’s he been seen in different locations.”
According to authorities, Dawson did not tell friends or family members where he was going. “Nobody really knows anything. It’s unusual,” said Hamilton.
Dawson’s uncle tells News 25 he is still in disbelief and this is very unlike Dawson. Hamilton says Dawson was in the spring play and stayed involved at Resurrection High. “An average student, does well, stays to himself, minds his own business, has a small group of friends, just like anybody else would,”
Dawson’s mother was at the Pascagoula Police Department today helping police search through his cell phone records. They’re hoping somebody somewhere knows where Dawson is. “The right thing to do is contact us or contact the family and say ‘hey, this is what his plans are,” said Lt. Adams.