Missing Cherry Valley man found safe & unharmed

An at-risk Cherry Valley man who went missing on Tuesday was found safe and unharmed Wednesday afternoon, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department.

Deputies issued a missing person alert Tuesday night after 55-year-old Paul Alford failed to return to his family’s home in the 10000 block of Bel Air Drive in Cherry Valley. His family said they had last seen him walking away from the house at 11 a.m. that morning.

Deputies said Alford suffers from early onset dementia and has trouble communicating.

A community service officer from the Cabazon Station was searching for Alford on Wednesday and found him near Cherry Valley Boulevard and Beaumont Avenue at about 12 p.m.

Alford was unharmed and safely returned to his family, according to the sheriff’s department.

It’s unclear where he was overnight but deputies couldn’t find him after extensively searching the area with a bloodhound and a sheriff’s helicopter.

Deputies want to thank the citizens who called to report possible sightings of Alford.