White House 'will spare no effort' in search for Robert Levinson

10 years after disappearance, family hopeful for Coral Springs man's return

PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. – President Donald Trump's administration vows to maintain an "unwavering" commitment to locating a Coral Springs man who disappeared from Iran's Kish Island a decade ago.

The White House said in a statement that it "will spare no effort" to bring Robert Levinson home. The former FBI agent was working on an unauthorized CIA mission when he disappeared in Iran in 2007.

The statement issued Thursday said that his "family has suffered too much during the last decade" since Levinson's absence.

In a video sent by his captors six years ago, Levinson looked haggard and stressed. But his son, Dan, has never lost faith.

"Do you think your father's alive and coming home?" Local 10 News senior political reporter Michael Putney asked.

"I absolutely do have hope that he's alive and he's going to come home to us soon," Dan Levinson said.

Levinson's congressman, U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch, D-Fla., called on Iran to free Levinson. So did U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla.

"Iran is responsible for returning Bob to his family," Nelson said Thursday on the Senate floor. "If Iranian officials don't have Bob, then they sure know where to find him."

When he campaigned in Broward County last year, Trump demanded freedom for Levinson.

"We're especially optimistic with the new Trump administration because President Trump is not afraid to say tough things and be more aggressive with the Iranians," Dan Levinson said.

The Levinson family hopes to speak with Trump next week.

A $5 million reward is available for information that leads to Levinson's location and safe return.