Jasmine Joseph missing as parents reveal she hadn't been to college since last May

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Jasmine Joseph, 22, was last heard from February 24 when she called her mother to say she was studying in college library
Police determined college junior placed the final call from a gym
Joseph was enrolled in New York Institute of Technology, where she was supposed to be studying nursing
Used her parents credit card to pay $6,000 for tuition, but she had not attended classes since last spring

PUBLISHED: 10:54 EST, 6 March 2014 | UPDATED: 13:11 EST, 6 March 2014

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Gone: Long Island nursing student Jasmine Joseph, 22, was last heard from on the evening of February 24

As far as her parents were concerned, 22-year-old Jasmine Joseph was a straight-A student studying hard to become a nurse.

But it was not until the young Long Island woman vanished more than a week ago that her family discovered the truth: Jasmine Joseph had not been seen in a classroom at the New York Institute of Technology since May of last year.

The Syosset resident went missing February 24 after calling her mother just after 5pm to tell her that she was studying in the library at the Old Westbury campus.

Police later determined that Jasmine Joseph was in a Syosset gym when she placed the call to her mother.

The 22-year-old never made it home that night, and her parents' calls later started going straight to voicemail.

On Wednesday, Jasmine's father made an emotional plea asking his daughter to come home.

'Please come back,' Sony Joseph tearfully told the station PIX11. 'Your papa and mom are waiting for you. We don’t ask you anything.'

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Truth revealed: Jasmine's parents, Sony and Lovely Joseph, have learned from police that their daughter had not attended classes since last May

Web of lies: Jasmine told her mother over the phone that she was studying at the college library, but it was later determined that the 22-year-old was calling from a gym

Jasmine, whose brother is away in medical school, has been living with her parents in Syosset while pretending to attend classes at NYIT.

A statement from her parents' American Express showed that the young woman used the credit card to pay her $6,000 tuition for the fall semester.

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However, investigators have uncovered that Miss Joseph was last seen on campus in the spring of 2013.

'That's not her character,’ said her mother, Lovely Joseph. ‘She always obeys.'

Frantic search: The parents rushed to the New York Institute of Technology campus in Old Westbury to look for Jasmine, but found no sign of her

Family life: The 22-year-old has been living with her parents in Syosset

Wholesome: Mr Joseph (top) works as an electronics technician, his wife (bottom center) is a registered nurse, and their son (far left) is away in medical school

Mrs Joseph noted that there had been some warning signs, including the fact that that her daughter was no longer bringing text books home.

But the 22-year-old explained that she was doing her coursework online.

Tearful plea: Sony Joseph begged his daughter to return home and promised that she will not be punished

The parents became even more concerned when Jasmine, who has been a straight-A student, failed to bring a report card this winter.

‘When her father asked to see the report card, she said there was something wrong with the computer,' said Mrs Joseph, a registered nurse with the North Shore-LIJ Health System.

On the night of Jasmine's disappearance, the parents went to search for her on campus, believing that someone had kidnapped her. They found no sign of the 22-year-old or her silver Nissan Altima.

Investigators do not think that Jasmine, who is legally an adult, was the victim of foul play.

The woman's father, a technician with the New York Transit Authority, insisted that his daughter – whom he decribed as being ‘always happy’ - had no reason to run away because she was free to come and go as she pleased, and was not subjected to strict rules.

When asked if the college junior may have been upset about a boyfriend, Sony Joseph stated that his daughter was not in a relationship with anyone.

Friends, family and volunteers have spent the past week distributing 'missing' flyers and raising awareness of Jasmine's disappearance through a Facebook page.

Kompassist Missing Persons Network also set up an online fundraiser on Fundly.com to finance the search efforts.

Joseph is 5-foot-4 and weighing 120lbs with brown eyes and black hair. She was last seen wearing white and black sneakers, black jeans and a green sweater.

Contesting theories: Police are convinced that the missing woman was not the victim of foul play, but her parents are certain that she would not have take off on her on

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Foghorn Leghorn, Fartburrow, United States, 25 minutes ago

Why are the kids of today doing such crazy things?. Must be something in the water is driving them nuts.

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LadyJustice, UK, 34 minutes ago

"She always obeys?" I think I get the jest of what is going on here. This girl isn't having any of coming home. She's not going to obey anyone..

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bondgirl, Sunrise, United States, 44 minutes ago

I hope she's okay, for their sakes. They look like they're suffering so badly. If she's off somewhere, I hope she does the right thing and calls them ASAP. I have a feeling she was engaged in a lifestyle that she knew would hurt them, deeply, but, this is so much worse.

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LoveyKat, Baltimore, United States, 54 minutes ago

I knew a girl who was from China.Her parents were old fashion like not letting her wear makeup.She was as brilliant straight A student with a full scholarship.She had plans to be a doctor.Freshman year she met a guy and they ran off and got married.Eight years later I see her cashiering at a store.She had broken up with the husband and never went back to school.Lost a stellar future over a guy.

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Captain Reynault, Georgia USA, United States, 1 hour ago

Unfortunately I see no good ending to this story, just varying degrees of bad.

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SPEAKTHETRUTH, Portland, 33 minutes ago

I hope she didn't have a mental health crisis of some sort.

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lesley elizabeth, south of boston massachusetts, United States, 1 hour ago

I hope anyone who knows her in her 'new life' since she stopped going to school will come forward and help the police find her, and that she just ran off to elope with a boyfriend or something and wasn't the victim of foul play.

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Tinkerbelle, stuck in the middle with you, United States, 1 hour ago

Sometimes parents pressure kids into going to college or to study and get a degree in something they have no interest in, but kids don't want to disappoint and sometimes they'll just go with it. Maybe she's afraid to tell her parents so she's taken off. At 22, she's an adult and has the right to do what she wants, but if she's OK she should call and talk to her parents.

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Brooke, EastCoast US, United States, 6 minutes ago

Agree about the pressure but she should not have continued to take her parents money! Hope she is found safe.

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mrssstricklin, San Diego, United States, 3 hours ago

I really hope she returns or is found safe. Her parents seem like hard-working caring folks who just want their daughter back no matter what - as any loving parent would.

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SPEAKTHETRUTH, Portland, 36 minutes ago

She is probably wracked with guilt and afraid to admit what she's done. I did something similar, and my parents found out when my failing grades were mailed to them.

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Chez John, Kensington London, United Kingdom, 3 hours ago

Maybe just a wayward girl, free spirit or simply trying to get away from home. I feel their is maybe a boyfriend lurking in the back ground, her folks seem pretty "well to do" - Is she afraid of letting them down ??

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BeamMeUp, Houston, United States, 3 hours ago

"She always obeys" - maybe that was part of the problem. She was tired of obeying (she was obviously doing something else while pretending to be going to school). I understand this may be a cultural issue, but it seems unreasonable to expect another person to obey indefinitely. People have wills of their own, especially living in an individualistic culture. What's sad is that something terrible may have happened to this girl, but it's going to be hard to get any leads when nobody knows where she was or what she's been doing all the time. I hope she's safe.

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Lauren, Portland, 2 hours ago

I was thinking of it the other way--that someone who "always obeys" can get in a whole lot of trouble if the wrong person realizes how obedient they are.