Family Suspects Foul Play in Disappearance of Lansdale Man

An effort is underway to find a missing Lansdale man named Joe Sarni, who was last seen July 8 leaving his apartment at 355 Walnut Street.

Foul play is suspected by the family, according to his sister Jamie Sarni Parsons.

Sarni is 38 years old. He has a thin build, is 5 feet 8 inches tall with brown hair and hazel eyes. He has a scar under each eye. He has tattoos on his arms, with distinguishable ones being a lizard and tribal symbols. He also has a Celtic heart tattoo on his right chest.

He has experience working in the auto-detailing, landscaping and pool cleaning businesses. Sarni does not own a vehicle and may be on foot or on a bicycle. 

Sarni, who has been a DJ across the United States and recently settled in Lansdale, attended Upper Dublin High School.

Parsons said witnesses told her they saw her brother with another man outside his apartment. However, Parsons said she contacted that man and he told her he wasn't with Sarni.

"I went into his apartment. Things didn't add up," said Parsons. "If my brother decided to disappear, he would have taken a few things with him that are still there."

Those things include his asthma rescue inhaler and an urn containing his mother's ashes. 

Parsons said there was still food in his apartment, like he was eating at the time of his disappearance. A 40-ounce bottle of alcohol was also half-full next to his bed. She said the door to his apartment was open as well.

"It's like he got a call and grabbed his smokes and went outside to see who it was," Parsons said.

She said a bartender claimed to have seen Sarni last Thursday. Parsons went to talk to the bars in town and view camera footage, but no footage showed her brother present at a bar.

Parsons "absolutely" believes it is foul play.

Parsons contacted Lansdale Police for help.

Lansdale Police said interviews have been conducted with family, friends and co-workers. An investigation began on July 16.

Sarni was entered as a missing person into a nationwide Law Enforcement database on July 16 and police departments in an extended area have been notified, police said. 

Family and friends are planning a search of the town at 6 p.m. Thursday, beginning at Sarni's residence.

If you have seen Sarni, or know information about his disapperance, contact Lansdale Police at 215-368-1801.