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Family seeks funds to help with memorial, transport for missing Tyler man found dead

Tyler Morning Telegraph - 12/4/2017

Dec. 03--The family members of a 32-year-old Tyler man who went missing in October and is believed to have been found dead Friday are raising money for a memorial and to transport him back to Utah.

Brandon Harward went missing on Oct. 23, his 32nd birthday. Although the Tyler Police Department was waiting for preliminary autopsy results before releasing the identity of the body, Brandon's family has confirmed they believe it to be him in part because of the watch found on him and the clothes he was wearing.

When Brandon went missing, his mother said he was in a breakdown mode.

He was diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome, which is an autism spectrum disorder, and also struggled with severe anxiety, depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder and schizophrenia, according to a GoFundMe page created by Blake Harward, who identified himself as Brandon's brother.

" He was also one of the most caring people with such good intentions," Blake Harward wrote in the post. "Most of these conditions were discovered as we looked for answers this week."

In the post, Blake said the family learned a lot about Brandon this week as they cleaned out his apartment and went through some of his things.

" His journals outlined just how much he has been struggling," Blake Harward wrote. "We tried so hard to find him, and now that he is found we are just hoping to lay him to rest close to where he grew up and where he called home."

Brandon moved to Tyler earlier this year to be closer to some of his family, including his mother. He worked for a time at Walmart on Troup Highway.

After he went missing, his family organized several searches for him and notified the Tyler Police Department, which sent out a news release about his disappearance.

His mother, Celeste Robison, said Friday prior to learning of the body found, that the family was actively looking. They had contacted the FBI and she said the agency had opened a case.

After learning he was found, she said Saturday a candlelight vigil would be planned with details released at a later date.

TWITTER: @TMTEmily

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(c)2017 Tyler Morning Telegraph (Tyler, Texas)

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