Former Giants cornerback Samuel Beal has been missing since July after unexpectedly driving to Virginia Beach instead of going to work. His girlfriend’s car was recovered in Virginia Beach with Beal’s shoes and socks inside and sand on the floor, and he reportedly took only the clothes he wore and his wallet. Kentwood police say the last confirmed contact was a July 13 text promising to return home; family searches and investigations have not located him.
Former Giants Cornerback Samuel Beal Missing Six Months After Unexpected Trip To Virginia Beach
New York Giants cornerback Sam Beal talks to reporters after an offseason workout in 2019. (Danielle Parhizkaran / USA TODAY Network file)(Danielle Parhizkaran)
Former New York Giants cornerback Samuel Beal, 29, has been missing since mid-July after an unexpected trip to Virginia Beach that his family and investigators cannot explain.
According to a redacted Kentwood Police report and the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUS), Beal dropped his girlfriend off at a relative’s home in Michigan on July 12 and — instead of going to work as expected — drove out of state. The girlfriend told police she had allowed Beal to use her car and believed he was headed to work; he never returned.
The girlfriend later discovered the vehicle in a Virginia Beach parking lot. NamUS reported that Beal "did not bring anything with him aside from the clothes he was wearing, a pair of slides, and his wallet that contained his banking card and driver's license." Investigators found Beal's shoes and socks on the floor of the front passenger seat and sand on the vehicle floor.
Kentwood police say the last confirmed contact with Beal was a text message to his girlfriend on July 13 in which he said he would be coming home. The case report states authorities have no information about his current whereabouts. The girlfriend also reported that the car’s GPS briefly showed locations in Pennsylvania before registering in Virginia Beach.
Beal’s sister, Essence Zhane, told local station WTKR that the family first thought he may have wanted time alone but grew increasingly worried. "We contacted police departments, businesses around, parking ramps, hotels, I was even on Airbnb to find potential listings along that way, we looked at hospitals and checked under every John Doe, psych wards, and down to the morgues," she said.
Beal was drafted by the New York Giants in the third round of the 2018 supplemental draft and appeared in six NFL games before opting out of the 2020 season because of the COVID-19 pandemic. He was added to NamUS in October.
Kentwood police and Beal’s family continue to search for leads. Anyone with information about Samuel Beal’s whereabouts is asked to contact the Kentwood Police Department or submit a tip to NamUS.
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