Reward Offered for Missing US Army Soldier
This person mysteriously vanished eight months ago.
El Paso hosted a rally at Album Park on Saturday on the disappearance of a Fort Bliss soldier. 21 year old Richard Halliday has been missing since July 24, 2020.
Fort Bliss and the El Paso community have searched for months with little trace of Halladay’s location.
Richard’s mother Patricia Halliday said, “Bring my son home, I miss him.”
A group of volunteers is holding a rally every week releasing red balloons in the air that say ‘please come back’ and ‘we miss you’ along with his mother’s phone number. They call this Operation Red Balloon.
Jennifer Sickles, the creator of Operation Red Balloon, said, “I still have hope. We still have hope that he’s out there, we’re hoping that he’ll come back, we’re hoping that someone will come forward and say ‘hey we know where he is.’”
The group has a Facebook page and encourage people to join the group. They provide updates on Richard as well as group events.
His unit conducted several searches around the unit area on Fort Bliss including the motor pools, barracks, installation fitness center, outdoor recreation centers, local hospitals, and jails.
The El Paso police department supported CID on September 1, 2020. CID is the Army Criminal Investigative Command and the Department of Defense’s premier investigative organization. CID is responsible for conducting Army related felony-level criminal investigations.
On September 3, 160 soldiers, 40 CID agents, eight installation law enforcement patrols, and volunteers conducted a search around the unit of Richard Halliday, 1st Battalion, 43rd Air Defense Artillery. The search was around the unit headquarters building, 80 unit barracks, and the unit’s maintenance area.
The search continued on September 5 as the installation searched West Fort Bliss areas. Areas searched included areas on base such as the installation Rail Operations Center, Sanitary Landfill road, known sinkholes, sewage systems, water canals, water drainages, and unoccupied buildings.
Searches continued on September 23–24 as the installation focused on parks and recreation areas. Over 200 miles of trails in the Franklin Mountain State Park and Indian Peak were searched. Over 200 soldier volunteers and Special Agents searched, while U.S. Army helicopters searched from the air. During this timeframe, CID Agents also searched homeless areas and residential areas in El Paso.
From October 15 to 20, Border Patrol Search/Trauma/Rescue Unit (BORTAC) and a Human Remains Detection (HRD) K-9 searched four miles of McKelligon Canyon.
On November 30, BORTAC and the HRD searched Halliday’s last known location, his barracks, basements, and motor pools.
“I arrived at Fort Bliss on September 29 and joined this effort to find Richard Halliday as it was underway. I came in with a fresh set of eyes and I was able to look critically at our actions beginning July 24 when Richard’s unit determined him missing,” said Major General Sean C. Bernabe, senior commander at Fort Bliss.
The Army has changed policies recently over the Fort Hood, Texas missing soldier case in 2019. Private Gregory Morales was listed as missing in September 2019. Morales was listed as a deserter but six months later he was found dead a few miles from base. His death is suspected of foul play.
Another missing soldier, Oranda Herminette Perez Moctezuma, appeared at her home a week ago. No foul play was suspected.
Halliday has been in the Army for two years and served as a Patriot missile launching station maintainer at the 32nd Army Air and Missile Defense.
Richard Halladay YouTube video
Army CID is offering $25,000 for credible information on Richard Halladay and the Halladay family is offering $10,000.
Any information, tips, or leads on Richard Halliday can be made to Army CID anonymously. You may call Fort Bliss CID at 915–568–1700 or online at cid.army.mil.
