Drew Ballantyne and his mother, Loretta Ballantyne. (Facebook/Loretta Ballantyne)

By Nigel Maxwell

Missing persons

‘My son, please come home’: mother makes tearful plea for answers

Jul 15, 2022 | 5:00 PM

Over two weeks have passed since Loretta Ballantyne last spoke to her son, but she’s not giving up hope and is actively out looking for him.

Drew Ballantyne, 34, was last seen on June 28 in Prince Albert. Loretta recalled for paNOW she had asked her son to come over and help clean the basement at her house in the city, which he agreed to. Around 11 p.m., Loretta advised her son it was getting late and she needed to get going. She did however advise her son that his sister could give him a ride to a safe place.

“I told him I love you my son, stay safe, don’t go anywhere where it’s not safe, I told him, and he said, yeah, I know, mom. That’s when I last saw him,” she said.

About two and a half hors later, Loretta said she received a text message from her son, advising her he had gotten a deal for $60 for a carton, and indicated plans to meet her back at the house around lunch. Because she was sleeping at the time, Ballantyne didn’t see the message until later that morning.

“I texted him and jokingly said, what’s a carton? And he didn’t respond back.”

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Noting how she wasn’t too worried at that point, as Ballantyne had issues with his phone in the past, Loretta explained she went to the house to wait and continued to send Drew text messages throughout the day, asking if he was okay.

“I’ve been texting him every day since that day,” she said.

A picture of Drew Ballantyne with his young son, Danny. (Facebook/Loretta Ballantyne)

On June 30, Loretta began getting more concerned and continued to inquire with her son’s close friends if they knew where he was. She acknowledged some of these friends had ties to local street gangs.

“About 9:01 p.m., according to my phone records, I phoned his cell and somebody else answered. And I said, hey, who’s this, where’s Drew, and the person hung up on me,” Loretta said.

Attempts to call back were met with no reply and the following day, Loretta filed a missing persons report.

“Dispatch told me I had to wait 48 hours and I said, okay,” she said.

Loretta explained her son was on parole at the time he disappeared, and had missed an appointment with his parole officer. This has resulted in a suspension being applied to his parole order, but even that hasn’t been enough to help increase search efforts.

“The police said we don’t really have the resources or the man power to look for someone with a simple breach,” Loretta said.

Drew has an eight-year-old son and Loretta explained the two are very close.

“He really misses his dad. He cries every day,” she said.

Loretta noted how her son was working as an iron worker, and had been involved in numerous projects around Saskatoon, including the Children’s Hospital and the new Arts Centre. Drew had also done some work in Toronto.

“He said he was going to go back as soon as his parole was up. He made plans for just him and his son, ‘just me and you, my boy,” she said.

Drew Ballantyne was making plans for a better life for him and his son. (Facebook/Loretta Ballantyne)

Acknowledging that her mind is all over the place over the loss of her son, Loretta was asked by paNOW what she might say to her son, just given the potential he may read this new article; or someone who knows of his whereabouts, might.

“My son, please come home, we miss you, we love you. If you are out there somewhere, get a hold of me like you did every day,” Loretta said.

Earlier this week, the Prince Albert Police Service issued a second request for assistance. They indicated their belief that Drew was in Saskatoon on June 30, while adding he has connections to the Big River area as well.

Anyone with information about the whereabouts of Drew Ballantyne is being asked to contact the Prince Albert Police Service or Crime Stoppers. Tips can also be submitted online at https://www.p3tips.com/248.

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nigel.maxwell@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @nigelmaxwell