EVERY night when he goes to sleep he cannot wait to wake up the next morning, just to find out if there is any new information regarding the disappearance of his son.
This Nelson Mandela Bay father and his family have been living their worst nightmare since the end of last year, when 18-year-old Almonré Antovian Ashley Roman left home and never returned.
Almost five months later, his father, Wesley Uithaler, said that as a family they are taking everything day by day but not knowing what exactly happened to his son gets to him the most.
Roman went missing on December 5, 2022, when he, according to video footage, was seen getting into a white VW Kombi outside Pick n Pay in Despatch.
About a month later, a ransom demand of R220 000 was made for Roman’s safe return.
According to Uithaler, he was contacted for the ransom but the one who made the demand has since been arrested.
Roman, who has never disappeared before, is described by his father as a responsible young man who was a prefect at school and always displayed exemplary behaviour.
As an aspiring actor and entertainer, he was constantly travelling to Johannesburg and Cape Town for auditions, where he met local celebrities.
“We spoke on the phone every day and I miss that so much. We have always had a good relationship and whenever he met an actor, he would always tell me about it and how he couldn’t wait to introduce me to them,” said Uithaler.
“The only thing we are holding onto as a family is hope. We believe that hope, and our trust in God, will carry us through this difficult time,” the father said before breaking down into tears.
After taking a few seconds to compose himself, he apologised and said, “It’s very hard for me to talk about this; it’s so hard.”
Uithaler said that he lived in East London at the time of Roman’s disappearance. His son’s mother, Anthea, had called him to say that Roman had not spent the night at home and that is very unlike him.
“His mother and I have a very good understanding and had Almonré from a previous relationship. I was at work when she called, and she reiterated that it is not in his nature to not sleep at home.
“Every time that he left for Cape Town or so for auditions, such as trying to get a role in Arendsvlei, he would contact me and tell me that he had arrived safely. He has always been a social person, but very responsible. He doesn’t walk around drunk, or smoke or anything like that, and I tried not to panic when his mother told me this.
“I obviously started to panic and when it was day two, it just became worse. On day three I decided to go to Despatch,” he explained, before tears once again overwhelmed him.
“I’m sorry, it’s really just hard to talk about this,” he apologised again.
“When I got to Despatch, I saw the video footage of him getting into the kombi, but the driver of the kombi denied that he was with my son.
“Only after the video was shown to him, did he suddenly remember that he was with Almonré that day. This was the last person who saw him before he went missing.”
Uithaler has confronted this person and according to the driver, he only dropped Roman off after giving him a lift.
According to Uithaler, police said that they didn’t have enough evidence to arrest this person.
The person in question has, in the meantime, posted a statement on social media denying his involvement in Roman’s disappearance.
He admitted to seeing Roman, but said that he only gave him a lift and dropped him off, but did not know what happened to him afterwards.
When asked what he would like to say to his son, an emotional Uithaler said through his tears repeating, “Come home son, come home. Please come home, son. We don’t know where you are, but we love you and are praying for God’s hand over your life. Come home, son.”
Roman’s disappearance is one of many that have rocked the metro in recent months.
In October 2022, businessman Ashraf Laher was kidnapped in broad daylight in Korsten. He is still missing.
Bay biokineticist, Riana Pretorius, was also kidnapped in March this year, with a ransom demand of R2 million.
She was safely returned to her family eight days later.
Hawks spokesperson, Captain Yolisa Mgolodela, confirmed that Roman and Laher are still missing.
“The victims are not yet found, but there is one suspect linked to both incidents that is under police custody,” she said.
