West was last seen after he left work at Outback Steakhouse on Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania on December 9, 2016. He walked two miles to Corner News, a convenience store on Coal Street, stopping to make a purchase at Wegmans on the way. The security cameras showed him at Corner News at 6:40 p.m; he withdrew $200 from an ATM there. He has never been heard from again.

Prior to his disappearance, West had stopped using his cellular phone because an ex-girlfriend was calling him on it. He got another phone to replace it, but it isn't clear if he ever activated it and his family doesn't know the number for it. He left behind two children, and his mother doesn't believe he would have left without telling anyone.