Case file
Key facts
- Name: Thomas Weightman
- Age at disappearance: 78
- Missing since: October 14, 2025
- Location: Forest Gale Heights neighborhood, Forest Grove, Oregon — near Valley Crest Way and Circle Crest Drive; witnesses saw him walking toward Gales Creek
- Description: 5 feet 9 inches tall, 165 pounds, gray hair, gray beard and glasses. Last seen wearing black shoes, blue jeans, a red flannel button-up shirt and a dark-colored baseball hat.
- Status: Still missing — on October 18, 2026, the Forest Grove Police Department said nearly 6,000 hours of searching had not found him and “the case will remain open until Mr. Weightman is found”
- Investigating agency: Forest Grove Police Department, 503-992-3260; Washington County non-emergency dispatch 503-629-0111; call 911 if you see him
A usual walk
Thomas Weightman, 78, headed out for one of his usual walks from his home in the Forest Gale Heights neighborhood, on Forest Grove’s western edge, at about 10 a.m. on Tuesday, October 14, 2025. He did not return. His family reported him missing that evening — the Washington County Sheriff’s Office says Forest Grove officers responded at about 5:37 p.m. to the report near Valley Crest Way and Circle Crest Drive.
Officers briefly reached him by cellphone. “Thomas said he fell into a hole and was unsure of his location,” the Sheriff’s Office said in its October 16, 2025 release. Attempts to locate him using cellphone triangulation were unsuccessful in the remote area. Multiple witnesses described seeing him walking toward Gales Creek, west of Forest Grove.
Six days, 800 searchers — and a second search a year later
The Washington County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue team led a mass search west of Forest Grove and into the Gales Creek valley. On the third day, searchers asked property owners south of Highway 6 along Gales Creek Road, down to NW Mystic Drive and as far east as NW Shearer Road, to check their land. About 800 personnel responded over six days, with outside search and rescue agencies, drones, aircraft, K9 units and crime analysts. The search was suspended on the evening of Sunday, October 19, 2025, and the case was turned over to Forest Grove Police detectives. Police said foul play was not suspected.
The searching did not end there. A second full-scale search, started after reviews of cellphone data and reports, also turned up nothing, and private groups mounted separate searches. Among them was the Pacific Northwest Missing Persons Project, whose founder Tanner Hoskins has urged owners of land within about 3 miles of Balm Grove — especially toward the eastern foothills, and in areas within a few hundred feet of locked gates along tree lines that slope downhill — to check property that has not been searched, and said his group passed its case information to police and to a trained search-dog group, CHAIS Inc. In total, the Forest Grove Police Department said in October 2026, the efforts “amounted to nearly 6,000 hours of searching.”
“Please just keep looking … whenever you are out tending your property, walking your dogs, or going for a run,” his wife, Patty Weightman, told News in the Grove a year after he vanished. “We have not given up hope.”
What is not known
No trace of Thomas Weightman has been reported found — no clothing, no phone, no confirmed sighting after the afternoon of October 14, 2025. Where he fell, how far he walked after that call, and whether he is on private land that has never been searched remain unanswered. Police have not suspected foul play, and the department has said the case stays open until he is found.
Have information?
Contact the Forest Grove Police Department at 503-992-3260. Anyone who saw Thomas after 3:30 p.m. on October 14, 2025, can call Washington County non-emergency dispatch at 503-629-0111, and anyone who sees him should call 911. Property owners west of Forest Grove and in the Gales Creek and Hillside areas are asked to check land that has not been searched.
Timeline
- October 14, 2025, ~10:00 a.m. — Weightman leaves his Forest Gale Heights home on foot for a walk and does not return.
- October 14, 2025, afternoon — In a brief cellphone contact, he says he fell into a hole and does not know where he is; cellphone triangulation fails.
- October 14, 2025, 5:37 p.m. — Family reports him missing; Forest Grove Police respond near Valley Crest Way and Circle Crest Drive.
- October 16, 2025 — Washington County Sheriff’s SAR asks Gales Creek and Hillside property owners to search their land.
- October 19, 2025 — After six days and about 800 personnel, the search is suspended and the case goes to Forest Grove Police detectives; foul play is not suspected.
- 2025–2026 — A second full-scale search after cellphone-data review, plus private searches, find nothing.
- October 18–19, 2026 — Forest Grove Police say nearly 6,000 hours of searching have been logged and the case will remain open until he is found. He is still missing at one year.
FAQ
Is Thomas Weightman still missing?
Yes. As of October 2026 — a full year after he disappeared — he has not been found. The Forest Grove Police Department said on October 18, 2026, that the case will remain open until Mr. Weightman is found.
When and where was Thomas Weightman last seen?
He left his home in the Forest Gale Heights neighborhood of Forest Grove, Oregon, at about 10 a.m. on October 14, 2025, for a walk. Witnesses described seeing him walking toward Gales Creek. In a brief cellphone call that afternoon, he said he had fallen and was unsure of his location.
What happened to Thomas Weightman?
That is not known. He told officers by phone that he fell into a hole, searchers could not locate him by his cellphone signal, and nearly 6,000 hours of searching over the following year — including a second full-scale search — found no trace of him. Police have said foul play is not suspected.
What does Thomas Weightman look like?
He is 5 feet 9 inches tall and 165 pounds, with gray hair, a gray beard and glasses. He was last seen wearing black shoes, blue jeans, a red flannel button-up shirt and a dark-colored baseball hat.
Who is investigating?
The Forest Grove Police Department, at 503-992-3260. The initial search was led by the Washington County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue team.
How can I help?
Check private property west of Forest Grove and in the Gales Creek area if it has not been searched, keep looking when you are outdoors in that area, and share his description. His family maintains the “Find Thomas Weightman” Facebook group with maps of searched areas.
Sources
- Local news (one-year update): News in the Grove, “A year later, Thomas Weightman is still missing” (October 19, 2026 — Forest Grove Police statement of October 18, 2026: nearly 6,000 hours of searching, second full-scale search, case will remain open until he is found; wife Patty Weightman’s appeal; Forest Grove Police Department 503-992-3260).
- Official / law enforcement: Washington County Sheriff’s Office, “SAR Asks for Assistance from Property Owners in Search Area” (October 16, 2025 — reported missing 5:37 p.m. October 14, 2025; left on foot ~10 a.m.; “fell into a hole” cellphone contact; description 5’9″, 165 lbs, gray hair and beard, glasses, red flannel shirt; search area along Gales Creek Road; dispatch 503-629-0111).
- Local news: News in the Grove, “Sheriff’s Office asks Gales Creek, Hillside residents to search their properties for missing man” (October 16, 2025 — photograph of Thomas Weightman courtesy of the Forest Grove Police Department; witnesses saw him walking toward Gales Creek).
- Local news: Banks Post, “Search for Thomas Weightman suspended” (October 20, 2025 — six-day search suspended October 19, 2025; ~800 personnel; turned over to Forest Grove Police detectives; foul play not suspected).
Found an error? Tell us via the About page and we will fix it promptly and note the change here. Last verified October 20, 2026.