NATCHEZ — Every day that Clinton Javon Prater is missing, his family’s worries escalate.

Prater’s sister Cynthia Davis said she received a call from Prater’s landlord Jan. 10 saying he had not been seen at his West Stiers Lane apartment in more than a week.

When Davis and her husband Luther searched Prater’s room, everything seemed to be in order and did not indicate anything out of the ordinary.

“It didn’t appear anything was out of place, except we only found the box for his medicine,” Davis said. “The medicine was gone.”

Prater, who is 28, was being treated locally for mental illness, Davis said.

Davis filed a report with the police last Wednesday, but now all she can do is wait.

When a missing person report is filed, the police do a follow-up investigation to determine whether or not a person is actually missing, Police Chief Mike Mullins said.

“We investigate by contacting family and friends,” Mullins said. “With an adult, they can go where they want and that’s usually all that there is to it.”

If the missing person is believed to have been the victim of a crime or if the police have reason to believe they are in danger, their information is entered into a national database.

If a person cannot be located, though, citizens should not hesitate to call the police, Mullins said.

“After they have called around and exhausted friends, acquaintances and family members, we would like for them to go ahead and call us so we can be aware of the situation and get an investigation started,” Mullins said.

But Davis hasn’t been able to find any clues about her brother’s whereabouts, and that worries her.

“He doesn’t have a lot of friends,” she said. “He walked most places. I’m not aware of anyone he would travel with.”

Prater is a medium-dark complected black male, and is approximately 5’11” and weighs approximately 160 pounds.

Anyone who might know of Prater’s whereabouts should contact the police or his aunt Annette Seiferth at 601-442-2548.