DoorDash driver’s car found in flames — but he’s still missing, Connecticut cops say

A DoorDash driver’s car was found “fully engulfed in flames” two days before his family reported him missing, police in Connecticut say.

The search is on for the 20-year-old man known to “frequent” western Connecticut, according to the Danbury Police Department.

Carlos Reyes’ vehicle was found on fire several miles away in Brewster, New York, with “no signs” of the driver inside or in the nearby area after a thorough search the night of March 29, Danbury police said in an April 8 news release.

“We’re quite concerned something may have happened to him,” Detective Lieutenant Mark Williams told News 12.

McClatchy News has left a message with Danbury police seeking an update on the ongoing investigation.

Reyes’ family told police they last saw him on March 28, a day before his now-destroyed Infiniti sedan was discovered, the news release said. He’s known to spend time in Danbury, Waterbury and Naugatuck, and he works both for DoorDash and as a driver for hire.

Video shared by the Brewster fire department showed firefighters extinguishing Reyes’ fiery car on March 29 just before midnight.

On April 7, investigators searched a Danbury home for “possible evidence or clues related” to him, according to Danbury police. They said they found “surveillance footage and evidence” connected to Reyes but didn’t provide further details.

Reyes’ family last saw him wearing black sweatpants and a black sweater as well as red Uggs slippers, the release said. He has brown hair and eyes and both his ears are pierced. Additionally, he’s roughly 5’10’’ and weighs about 170 pounds.

“He regularly wears three gold chains around his neck, each having a gold pendant.”

Police said that the case is “an ongoing missing person investigation.”

Anyone with information about Reyes’ disappearance is asked to contact Williams with the Danbury Police at 203-796-1601.

Danbury is roughly 60 miles southwest of Hartford.

This story was originally published April 12, 2022 at 11:03 AM with the headline "DoorDash driver’s car found in flames — but he’s still missing, Connecticut cops say."

Julia Marnin

McClatchy DC

Julia Marnin covers courts for McClatchy News, writing about criminal and civil affairs, including cases involving policing, corrections, civil liberties, fraud, and abuses of power. As a reporter on McClatchy’s National Real-Time Team, she’s also covered the COVID-19 pandemic and a variety of other topics since joining in 2021, following a fellowship with Newsweek. Born in Biloxi, Mississippi, she was raised in South Jersey and is now based in New York State.