Hamilton police are asking for the public's assistance in locating a man they say may pose a threat to the community and are urging people not to approach him.
The warning comes just hours after the man went missing — in contrast to a similar situation just over a week ago when police took 19 hours to issue a warning that a violent offender had "walked away" from the facility.
Police say at around 2:30 p.m. today, 38-year-old Jason Murray went missing from St. Joe's West 5th mental health campus.
He was last seen running westbound through the parking lot of the hospital located at 100 West 5th Street.
They say hospital staff reported him missing right away.
Murray is described as a white man with a slim build, 5'7," with brown shaggy hair.
Police say he was last seen wearing a black baseball cap and sunglasses, blue shirt and brown pants.
Police are urging people not to approach the man and should call 911 right away if he's seen.
According to police, Murray is currently an involuntary patient in the forensic program.
Councillor raises safety concerns
On Monday Mountain councillor Terry Whitehead announced that wanted to know how the patient last week considered "a threat to public safety" went missing from St. Joe's and why there was no public warning from police about his disappearance for 19 hours.
Whitehead said that he was happy there was a positive outcome after the 33-year-old went missing, but raised concern that it may not be the same outcome in the future.
He said he wants clearer protocols in place for alerting the public when safety issues arise.
In the release from Whitehead Monday, the councillor stated that he's asking for the internal review that St. Joe's conducted after the incident to be released.
In an email statement to CBC News, Winnie Doyle, executive vice-president clinical programs at St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton said the review that was undertaken "found that all protocols were followed prior to the pass being granted and that notification of the police occurred immediately."
Hamilton police told CBC News Tuesday that they were conducting a review and are looking into the circumstances around last week's disappearance.