HANSVILLE — The Kitsap County Sheriff’s Department has suspended its search for Brandon Lee Blanford and hopes someone can provide information leading to Blanford’s whereabouts. The man’s parents assume their son is dead, that he walked into the waters of Admiralty Inlet the evening of Dec. 11 and let the frigid waters take his life.

Charles Blanford of Hansville wrote a letter to the editor Tuesday thanking all of the rescue workers who searched for his son, who was last seen Dec. 11. Involved in the search were Kitsap County Sheriff’s Search & Rescue Unit; Washington Explorer Search and Rescue, Kitsap Unit; All Breed Canine Search and Rescue; German Shepherd Search Dogs of Washington State; North Kitsap Fire & Rescue; and Suquamish Police Department.

“The support was overwhelming,” Blanford said Tuesday. “Many came from far away. They have jobs and they gave up their day, they gave up their work, to help.”

Anyone with information about Blanford’s whereabouts should call Detective Nicole Menge, (360) 337-7117; or Kitsap County Central Communications, (360) 308-5400. The younger Blanford is 36 years old. He is described as Caucasian, 5 feet 11 inches, 226 pounds, medium build, with green eyes and short, light brown curly hair. He has a tattoo on his right shoulder with his daughter’s name, “Paris”,” in Aramaic writing, according to the Sheriff’s Department.

Blanford was last seen wearing a cream-colored jacket with blue patches in the neck, a long gray-colored sweater, black sweat pants, black Nike-brand athletic shoes and a gray-colored baseball cap. He was wearing a silver loop earring in his right ear and was wearing black-framed glasses.

Blanford was last seen leaving his parents’ home in the 39000 block of Shoreview Drive NE, Hansville, around 7:30 p.m. Dec. 11. His family reported that he left the house to go for a walk, unaccompanied, in the general vicinity of NE Twin Spits Road / Hansville Road NE / Point No Point Road NE. His family reported him missing the next day.

The son borrowed his dad’s coat and his dad’s cell phone was in a coat pocket. During the search, the Sheriff’s Department asked Cencom to ping the phone, and search and rescue personnel found the coat and cell phone on a beach in Hansville, the father said.

The younger Blanford has a history of despondency and was being treated for it, according to a Sheriff’s Department report. He lived alone in Bremerton but had a girlfriend and a web design business, according to the report.

Sheriff’s Department spokesman Deputy Scott Wilson said Wednesday that there has been no activity on Blanford’s bank account or credit card since his disappearance. He left his wallet and driver’s license at his parents’ home. “We don’t know what happened to him. We assume he took his life,” the father said. “He’s home with the Lord. We’re Christians, and we feel that’s where he is.”

Referring to his son’s despondency, the father said he hoped others with relatives who are despondent “will examine their relationships and see what they can do now. I hope that something good comes out of this.”