By: Olivia Tattory
HAMILTON Gordon Hector, an 81-year-old retired New Jersey State Police captain, was still missing Monday after a three-day search and might have headed in the direction of Princeton.
According to his son, Chuck, Mr. Hector, a Hamilton Square resident who is suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, was last seen leaving his family’s Park Avenue home around 6:30 p.m. Friday heading toward Nottingham ballpark.
A few hours later at 9:30 p.m., when Mr. Hector hadn’t yet returned home, his wife called his cell phone to check in. He told his wife that he was in a wooded area with trees and that he wasn’t sure where he was. Mr. Hector’s cell phone then either lost connection or was shut off. No one has spoken with him since.
After police searched the region that Mr. Hector was thought to be and found nothing, they activated a reverse 911 call to the area. The call, which notified residents that Mr. Hector was missing, complete with a physical description, prompted many to respond.
"We started receiving phone calls around 3 p.m. Saturday that many had seen my father around Sloan Avenue the night before," said Chuck Hector. "Many callers stated they saw him between 9 and 10 p.m. near the theater," referring to the AMC Hamilton 24 complex.
The location, thought to be too far for Mr. Hector to travel, was confirmed after the tower used to transmit the phone call was determined to be from Lawrence.
On Saturday, Chuck Hector said a caller, who had seen the fliers posted in the area, claimed his father was seen about 1 p.m. that day walking along the Delaware & Raritan Canal near Baker’s Basin Road. This path leads directly into Princeton. Chuck Hector also noted his family’s history in the Princeton area.
As longtime members of the Nassau Swim Club as well as other groups, the Princeton area would be familiar to Mr. Hector and a possible place for him to end up.
Mr. Hector is described as a white male, 180 pounds, 6 feet 1 inch tall, with white hair, a white mustache and an anchor tattoo on his upper left arm. He was last seen wearing tan shorts, a light-colored short-sleeve shirt and tan shoes.
Anyone with information concerning Mr. Hector should contact the Hamilton Police Department at (609) 581-4000.

