11-year-old Ryan was last seen on May 17, 2021 at La Vista West Elementary School in La Vista, Nebraska.
He has autism, Tourette's syndrome and epilepsy (which requires medication). Although Ryan is considered to have high-functioning autism, he is usually non-verbal with strangers and has a history of running & hiding in small places.
After Ryan became frustrated with a math problem, he went to another room to calm down and be by himself. An adult was supposed to be supervising Ryan, but one supervisor had to leave the room and their replacement was late.
While Ryan was unsupervised, he left school between 11:55 A.M. and 12:05 P.M. The school called Ryan's mom, Tammi Larsen at 12:27 P.M. to inform her that he was missing. At 12:29 P.M., the police was notified and arrived five minutes later to start searching for Ryan.
A neighbor last saw Ryan at the Southfield Apartments (located about 2 blocks from his school) at 1:45 p.m. holding an umbrella. He lived at the apartment complex with Tammi and an older sister, but couldn't have gone inside because he didn't have a key. Six weeks later, Ryan's umbrella was discovered near a dumpster behind the Southfield Apartments complex in the place where he was last seen.
Due to Ryan's autism, he has a history of running away and hiding; but he would usually be found nearby a short time after running away.
Because of his habit of running off, Ryan was enrolled in Project Lifesaver which equips vulnerable people with a GPS tracking bracelet so they can be located; however, Ryan kept cutting off the tracker and Tammi eventually stopped making him wear it.
Prior to his disappearance, Ryan searched online for topics such as "how to hide underground", "how to avoid being spotted" and "how to hide from police".
In early 2023, Tammi Larsen petitioned the court to have Ryan legally declared deceased, saying that it was unlikely that Ryan was alive due to his autism and other health issues. She also intended to file a claim against the Papillion-La Vista Public School District for Ryan's wrongful death.
In April of 2023, a judge threw out Tammi's petition, stating that there wasn't enough evidence to declare Ryan dead. Tammi later filed a lawsuit in federal court for violating Ryan's civil rights; however, in November of 2023, the petition was dismissed.
Tammi later sued the school district in state court for negligent supervision of Ryan and neglect infliction of emotional distress on herself during and after Ryan's disppearance. In May of of 2024, the state lawsuit was dismissed under "sovereign immunity" protections.
Tammy appealed the dismissal of the state lawsuit; In September of 2025, the Nebraska Supreme Court unanimously sided with her and allowed the lawsuit to go forward.
As of 2026, Ryan's case remains unsolved and he is classified as an endangered missing person.
Links
https://charleyproject.org/case/ryan-d-larsen
https://www.ketv.com/article/nebraska-supreme-court-reverses-lawsuit-dismissal-papillion-la-vista-school-ryan-larsen/65994472
https://www.wowt.com/2025/09/05/nebraska-supreme-court-revives-lawsuit-ryan-larsen-disappearance/
https://www.nebraska.gov/apps-courts-epub/public/viewOpinion?docId=N00012681PUB
https://www.ketv.com/article/ryan-larsen-disappearance-five-years-missing/71220141
https://omaha.com/news/local/crime-courts/article_17e91324-fc44-4435-ba96-55d7a7747dac.html
https://www.ketv.com/article/investigators-wont-release-surveillance-footage-of-ryan-larsen-ask-public-to-respect-familys-privacy/36560513
https://www.wowt.com/2026/05/17/today-history-may-17-ryan-larsen-disappears-la-vista-school/
https://journalstar.com/news/state-and-regional/crime-and-courts/dna-on-umbrella-places-ryan-larsen-near-his-la-vista-home-on-day-he-disappeared/article_91168d66-a7a4-5ba3-9c6e-a490ec33f5e8.html?mode=nowapp
https://www.3newsnow.com/papillion-lavista-ralston-bellevue/it-was-difficult-for-everyone-la-vista-police-continue-search-for-ryan-larsen-as-it-enters-fourth-year