Officials are asking for the help of the public in locating Dr.Burton Friedman, a Wesson family practitioner, who has come upmissing after planning to attend a haircut appointment in FlowoodWednesday around lunch time.

Friedman was last seen Wednesday around 11 a.m. before he leftfor the appointment. Wesson Police officials said the 82-year-olddoctor has a history of congenital heart failure, so he may havebecome ill or disoriented behind the wheel of his vehicle.

Although there is no evidence to support a link, officials arenot ruling out a connection between the doctor’s disappearance andthe search for a suspect who has eluded authorities since a trafficstop on Interstate 55 around noon Wednesday.

“He has been missing since sometime after 11 a.m. Wednesday, andhas not been seen or heard from since,” said Wesson Police OfficerPhilip Sterling about Friedman. “It is possible that it could beconnected to the situation with the manhunt Wednesday.”

A massive multi-agency manhunt ensued Wednesday after a suspectin a stolen vehicle from Panama City, Fla., brandished a weapon ata Mississippi Highway Patrol trooper and attempted to hit him withthe vehicle. The manhunt went on all night and into Thursday withno detection of the suspect.

The Copiah County Sheriff’s Department said while thepossibility of the fugitive’s involvement in the doctor’sdisappearance shouldn’t be ruled out, it’s also hard to puttogether timewise.

Friedman is believed to have been driving his 2005 gold MercuryGrand Marquis at the time he disappeared. Officials describe him as5 feet, 11 inches, around 270 lbs, and last seen wearing a whiteshirt and black pants with suspenders.

Anyone with any information on Dr. Friedman or his vehicle areurged to call the Wesson Police Department at (601) 643-2211 or theCopiah County Sheriff’s Department at (601) 894-3011.