Family desperate to find missing son last seen heading to school

A Winnipeg family is asking for help to find their missing teenage son whom they haven't seen since he left for school in the Fort Richmond area last Wednesday morning.

Winnipeg police say Inuka Gunathilaka was last seen on May 24.

Inuka's family say the last time they saw their 16-year-old son was when he left for school that morning.

"If someone knows about Inuka, please inform us. We want Inuka to come home," the boy's father Nishantha Gunathilaka told CTV News.

He said Inuka was seen at Fort Richmond Collegiate around 8:11 a.m. that day. He dropped some books at the library and then left a few minutes later heading towards Pembina Highway.

The family has shared security pictures and videos with CTV News which show Inuka visiting a 7/11 and Tim Hortons that morning in the area.

The community has been searching for Inuka tirelessly since Wednesday. The search group said they have tracked him up Pembina Highway from Killarney Avenue to Thatcher Drive.

But after that the video trail stops.

Inuka’s parents are desperate for any information that might lead to finding their son.

"My son, please come home," Inuka's mother Nilanka Gadaba said.

The Winnipeg police service's missing persons unit is investigating. The Pembina Trails School Division also sent out a bulletin to parents, asking anyone who has information to call police.

Inuka's classmates have been asking people to share posts about this case so as many people as possible can keep an eye out for him.

On Tuesday morning, Inuka's family and friends are planning to hold an event outside the Victoria Hospital asking for any dash cam footage from that route that could provide new details on his movements last Wednesday.

Police describe Inuka as being about six feet tall with a medium build and short black hair. He was last seen wearing glasses, a blue sweater and dark blue jeans with black shoes.

Anyone with information is asked to call the missing persons unit at [phone].