0:01

What is going on True

0:04

Crime fans? I'm your host Tith.

0:17

And I'm your host Daphne. And you're

0:19

listening to Going West. Hello everybody.

0:21

Big thank you to all of

0:23

you for listening to this episode,

0:25

but also to Sarah, Autumn and

0:27

Carrie for recommending today's case. This

0:30

is another one of those cases where a young

0:33

man disappears after walking alone at

0:35

night. It's in that large group

0:37

of cases exactly like it. This

0:40

one actually kind of reminds me of that

0:43

case from Texas. Jason Landry. We covered that

0:45

case, I think a year ago, maybe a

0:47

little more than a year ago. Yeah, I think

0:49

it was about a year ago. Definitely some similarities

0:51

with that one. And then there's another one, Heath,

0:53

you mentioned earlier. Yeah, that's the

0:55

Alonzo Brooks case out of Kansas. If

0:58

you guys have seen that Unsolved Mysteries

1:00

episode, it is crazy. But

1:03

this case has a lot of similarities. Yeah, it

1:05

definitely does. It's so sad that there are

1:07

so many cases that kind of fall into

1:09

this category. We talk about it every time

1:12

that we cover one of them because it's

1:14

just so baffling to us every single time.

1:16

But this one does have a little bit

1:18

more to it and some really solid seeming

1:20

theories. So again, thank you to Sarah, Autumn

1:22

and Carrie for recommending it and thank you

1:24

guys for tuning in. All

1:26

right, guys, this is episode 387 of Going West. So let's get

1:28

into it. In

2:05

March of 2012, an

2:08

18-year-old pre-med student returned to

2:10

his hometown of Tupper Lake, New York

2:12

to enjoy spring break with his family

2:14

and friends. But

2:17

after heading off to a local party

2:19

with some high school buddies, he vanished

2:22

and hasn't been seen since. Despite

2:28

only a couple of his belongings being

2:31

found and two eyewitness reports,

2:34

there's one theory that holds weight

2:36

in this case, with the

2:38

whole town apparently knowing who is

2:41

behind his disappearance. This

2:48

is the soil of Colin

2:50

Gillis. Colin

2:53

Gillis was born on March 4,

2:55

1994 in Tupper Lake,

2:57

New York, so he

3:00

just passed what

3:16

should have been his 30th birthday. Tupper

3:19

Lake is a small community situated

3:21

in upstate New York among a

3:23

smattering of other small towns in

3:25

Adirondack State Park, which is a

3:27

region encompassing 6 million

3:30

acres of mountainous terrain and

3:32

wildlife. Also dotting

3:34

the mountain range are resorts, ski

3:36

hills, and dozens of bodies of

3:39

water connected by rivers and

3:41

tributaries. Positioned alongside

3:43

the Racquet River and on the

3:45

banks of Racquet Pond, Tupper Lake

3:47

is a logging town known for

3:49

its fall foliage and access to

3:51

mountains and hiking trails. Colin's

3:54

parents, Patty and John, were well known

3:56

and very well liked in the area

3:59

for the woodwork shop that they

4:01

owned and operated together. Colin

4:04

was the middle of three brothers joining

4:06

older brother Linden and then later

4:08

joined by younger brother Ian and

4:10

according to Colin's dad John the

4:12

brothers were very close. Right

4:15

there in Tupper Lake Colin grew

4:18

up into a bright strong-willed and

4:20

happy teen. His brother

4:23

Ian recalls fondly quote, he loved

4:25

to be around people and just

4:27

meet people and include people and

4:29

make people laugh. He was such

4:32

a people pleaser more than anything

4:34

else. He just loved to make

4:36

people happy. His mom Patty added

4:38

jokingly quote, break your balls, push

4:40

your buttons, see what reaction he

4:43

could get out of you. One

4:45

word that comes to mind with

4:47

Colin was genuine. Whether he was breaking

4:49

your balls or telling you he loved you. In high

4:53

school Colin was popular and athletic

4:55

and played for both his basketball

4:57

and football teams. And

5:00

overwhelmingly what friends and classmates have

5:02

remembered about Colin is his kindness.

5:05

A gifted academic he was a year

5:07

younger than his school peers because he

5:09

skipped a grade and he graduated Tupper

5:11

Lake High School in 2011 and

5:14

he was interested in pursuing a

5:17

pre-med track and decided to study

5:19

biology hoping to become a doctor.

5:22

But his dad John joked quote,

5:24

I always told him he should

5:26

be pre-law instead of pre-med because

5:28

he never lost an argument. So

5:31

in 2012 Colin

5:33

was attending the State University of New

5:35

York in Brockport, New York also

5:38

known as SUNY near Rochester about four

5:40

and a half hours southwest of his

5:42

hometown of Tupper Lake. So

5:44

he wasn't too far away from his family while

5:47

he was studying but just you know close enough

5:49

to where he could still go visit them. Now

5:52

in the second semester of his freshman

5:54

year Colin was enjoying his newfound freedom

5:56

and his friends. In March

5:58

of 2012. Cohen went

6:00

back home to enjoy spring break with

6:02

his family and his high school friends

6:04

who also back and supper leg for

6:06

that week. On. Saturday, March

6:09

Tenth, Two Thousand and Twelve. So nearly

6:11

a week after the eighteenth birthday remember,

6:13

he did skipped a grade. Cohen.

6:15

Spent the day with his parents and

6:17

brothers were just absolutely thrilled to have

6:20

him back home. So. That

6:22

evening they. Had dinner together and then they

6:24

gathered around the T V to watch college

6:26

basketball game. And then later that

6:28

night he had plans to meet up with

6:30

some old friends. so. At eight thirty Pm

6:33

that night. He left his parents' house to

6:35

had to a friend's house and the same neighborhood.

6:38

His. Parents also noted that he had not

6:40

been wearing a coat at this time, though

6:42

he did stuff on in his backpack before

6:44

he headed out. So. After

6:46

spending some time at one friend's house,

6:48

the group move to another friend's house.

6:51

One. Of Cohen's friends, heard about a twenty

6:53

first birthday party someone was having in the

6:55

area and wondered if anybody else wanted to

6:58

go. Do. The boys weren't

7:00

necessarily friends with the house or

7:02

the attendees, and hadn't been explicitly

7:04

invited. They. Decided to drop and see

7:07

who was there when if it was just

7:09

worth checking out. So. Nine of

7:11

them piled into cars and headed to

7:13

this house. Parties. The. Party was

7:15

being held at a home on Pet

7:17

Skunk. I'm A road, which is a

7:20

rural stretch of wooded area that intersects

7:22

the route three, about three miles or

7:24

four point eight kilometers south west of

7:27

downtown Tuber. Late. And

7:29

according to reports. There. Had been

7:31

about forty people in attendance at this

7:33

party that night. According to

7:35

some sell a party goers while

7:37

they're call and became involved in

7:40

an altercation with somebody and apparently

7:42

his punches were thrown with some

7:44

accounts claiming that the fight had

7:46

started over a girl. So.

7:49

Collins Group decided that it was in

7:51

their best interest to head out, but

7:53

inexplicably. It whether it was to finish what he

7:56

started with the other party goer. To attempt

7:58

to patch things up or because you. was

8:00

genuinely having fun, Colin decided

8:02

to stay at the party. So he did

8:04

not go back with his friends. And I

8:06

don't know what he was planning to do

8:09

for a ride. We do know that he

8:11

would eventually call somebody, which I'll get into,

8:13

but I guess he just

8:15

was thinking that he was going to

8:17

figure out how he was going to get home that night.

8:19

So against his friends better judgment,

8:21

he told them that he was going to

8:23

stay a while longer and that he would

8:25

head out later. So his

8:28

friends took off and Colin stuck

8:30

around. At

8:32

some point between when his friends left the

8:34

party and when Colin departed on his own,

8:36

like I hinted at, he phoned a friend

8:38

who lived in the area to ask for

8:40

a ride because obviously he didn't have a

8:42

car with him. But the friend

8:45

who had been asleep at the time didn't

8:47

listen to the voicemail until the

8:49

next morning when it was

8:51

already too late. Though

8:54

Colin may have been drinking at the

8:56

party, his parents who were later able

8:58

to listen to the messages that he

9:01

left remarked that Colin was speaking clearly

9:03

and cogently on the phone. So he

9:05

didn't appear to be intoxicated. Around

9:08

1 a.m. on the morning of March

9:10

11th, 2012, Colin departed the house party leaving

9:14

on foot, though,

9:16

just outside of town, the area is

9:19

dark and densely wooded and it doesn't

9:21

offer streetlights or sidewalks to pedestrians. And

9:23

on top of this, the

9:25

weather hovered in the low 20s

9:27

Fahrenheit or around negative five

9:29

degrees Celsius. So it was

9:32

extremely chilly outside. So it's

9:34

cold and it's dark. Venturing

9:37

out by himself in the dark

9:39

on a cold night that lay

9:42

after he had potentially been drinking

9:44

was definitely a calculated risk. Despite

9:46

Colin knowing the area well, especially

9:48

because he was traveling along the

9:50

shoulder of the road known for cars

9:53

traveling at high speeds, but he was

9:55

just trying to get home when

9:58

he reached the intersection of Gunga

10:00

Mae Road and State Route 3,

10:02

he turned left instead of

10:04

right, heading toward Piercefield, New

10:06

York, which is the next town

10:08

west of Tupper Lake instead of

10:10

turning right toward Tupper Lake. Now,

10:13

whether this was confusion or

10:15

intentional, for some reason that

10:17

we are not privy to, is unknown because

10:20

Colin wouldn't be seen again to be

10:22

able to explain this move. Now,

10:24

by this time, he had been living out of the

10:27

area since at least August when school

10:29

started which was about six months earlier,

10:31

so it's possible that he had just

10:33

forgotten the way or honestly didn't know this

10:35

road well enough and hadn't walked down it

10:37

before, so he just didn't know the

10:40

exact way. Like I know his parents will harp

10:42

on the fact that he did know the area,

10:44

but I mean, again, he

10:46

hadn't lived there in months, so it's

10:49

definitely understandable that he made a mistake

10:51

if that is what happened. Yeah,

10:54

and it's also, you know, understandable

10:56

that he could have potentially made

10:58

this mistake because it is

11:00

1 a.m. and it's dark.

11:02

There's, again, it's a rural road, so

11:04

it's not very lit, and

11:07

so it's very easy for him to

11:09

be confused, especially after he might

11:11

have been drinking at this party. Again, we

11:13

don't know if he was intoxicated or not,

11:15

but you can kind of assume, you

11:17

know, he's 18, he's going to a house party. It's

11:21

fair to say that probably the group was

11:24

drinking a little bit. Yeah, and again,

11:26

remember, it's super dark, it's cold, he's

11:28

probably tired. Confusion makes

11:30

sense, but he would encounter

11:32

somebody right in this spot. So

11:35

another attendee at the party, Austin

11:38

Toohey and his cousin Jordan Amell,

11:40

left the party shortly after Colin around

11:43

1.30 a.m. Now

11:46

they actually intersected Colin at the cross

11:48

streets of Pascunga May Road and State

11:50

Route 3, which we've been talking about,

11:53

where Colin had turned left instead of

11:55

right. And According to

11:57

Austin, who was later questioned by police, the. Para

12:00

pulled over along the shoulder to offer

12:02

calling a ride. But. Austen

12:04

recalled that Colin think them,

12:06

but declined. Now. According

12:08

to Austin, Cohen said that he was waiting on

12:11

a friend to pick him up. Though.

12:13

We now know that you know he was

12:15

never able to reach anybody. so. You.

12:17

Know why did he lie about this? was

12:19

he's scared of Austen or was asked in

12:21

the one that was lying. Or.

12:24

With someone actually picking Cohen up meaning

12:26

neither relying and we've never learn to

12:28

that person was because they're involved in

12:31

his disappearance. Well. Austin

12:33

continued on his way and dropped off

12:35

his cousin Jordan at home. Than.

12:37

A few minutes later, Austin said

12:39

that he happened upon Colin again

12:41

and told police that he pulled

12:43

over for a second time to

12:45

offer calling a ride, but again

12:47

Colon declined this ride. But.

12:50

Around that same time. Another

12:52

motorist spotted Colin. A

12:55

man named Rich Rosen Fretter was

12:57

driving his elderly mother home early

12:59

that morning at around two am.

13:01

And Spotted Cohen alongside the

13:03

road. Now. Puzzled

13:05

and concerned for calling, Rich wanted

13:08

to get his mother home safely

13:10

before getting involved. So. After dropping

13:12

her off at home where it's drove to

13:14

the local police station to report what he

13:16

had seen. Concerned. About the

13:19

wellbeing of a young man out that

13:21

lead in the frigid cold of an

13:23

upstate New York winter. He

13:26

also noted that Colon had not been wearing

13:28

his coat and that he was walking against

13:30

the flow of traffic. Risk.

13:33

Describe the colon seemed a bit

13:35

disoriented or in need of help,

13:37

reportedly waving his arms around as

13:39

he walked. By. About thirty

13:42

minutes after Richard spotted calling, the police

13:44

reported to the scene, but by that

13:46

time Colin was gone so nobody could

13:48

figure out where he had gone. So.

13:51

Riches sighting of him believed to have

13:53

been around two am on the morning

13:55

of March eleventh is the last known

13:57

sighting of eighteen year old Poland Deal.

14:01

And since the party was about at least

14:03

three miles from where his family home was,

14:05

it would have taken him about an hour

14:07

to walk home without stopping and if he

14:09

was headed in the right direction. So. Not.

14:12

Accounting for getting lost exactly

14:14

but calling. It never arrived at

14:16

home and he wasn't answering his phone

14:18

and when his parents awoke to this

14:20

realization they figure that he just stayed

14:22

out late and cross for the night

14:24

at a friend's house. And. His

14:26

family later recalled that it was not

14:29

unlike calling to allow his phone to

14:31

die. so it kind of made sense

14:33

that that it did die that happen

14:35

once in awhile. So they just hope

14:37

for the best and you know we're

14:39

expected him to arrive home sometime that

14:41

day. But that morning one of Collins

14:43

friends reported that they received a voice

14:45

mail from him asking for a ride

14:47

at which we know took place at

14:49

about one of them as call and

14:51

was leaving the parties. Like.

14:53

His parents later a tested this

14:56

friend noted that Calling hadn't seem

14:58

disoriented or distressed at the time.

15:00

but as the day war on

15:02

and calling didn't check in party

15:05

and John. Began to grow.

15:07

Concerned. None of his

15:09

friends had claimed ham or come forward

15:11

to say that they had seen him

15:13

or been able to reach him after

15:15

they departed the house party and he

15:17

remained the unreachable by phones. With.

15:19

Fear fully setting in at

15:21

five thirty Pm that evening

15:23

at Sunday, March Eleventh, Two

15:25

thousand and Twelve Paul was

15:27

reported missing by his parents.

15:30

The darkness and plummeting nighttime

15:33

temperatures were creeping in. Again,

15:35

search efforts were organized immediately.

15:38

New York State. Police properly. Police

15:40

Department of Environmental Conservation,

15:42

Park Rangers from Adirondack

15:45

State Park and over

15:47

a thousand volunteers. From

15:49

the community teamed up to

15:51

search for call in. This.

15:53

State deployed helicopters to scan the

15:55

area from above for any sign.

15:57

Of him or his belongings the you. Air

16:00

Boats and sonar equipment search

16:02

nearby Rockette Pond and branched

16:05

into all nearby bodies. Of

16:07

water of which there were

16:09

many. The landscape

16:11

is rife with a complicated web

16:13

of intersected rivers, streams, ponds, and

16:16

tributaries. so it was a very.

16:18

Very tough search here. Especially

16:21

since a layer of freshly

16:23

fallen snow complicated the already

16:25

large task of dissecting the

16:27

dense forest surrounding the area

16:29

where she disappeared. But despite

16:31

all this. The. Adirondack for

16:33

it was combed as meticulously

16:36

as volunteers possibly could it,

16:38

given the rocky terrain. And

16:40

mean the terrain is unforgiving. Maintaining

16:43

nine other missing persons cases dating

16:45

all the way back to Nineteen

16:47

seventy one surround the time it

16:50

call went missing. From Two Thousand

16:52

Eleven to two thousand and Thirteen

16:54

Adirondack State Park Rangers conducted hundreds

16:57

of reconnaissance missions for those lost

16:59

in the area. Most. Of

17:01

whom were eventually sound but

17:04

thirty people. Died due to

17:06

natural causes within the confines of

17:08

the park in the span of

17:10

those two years alone. And to

17:13

ensure call wouldn't be added to

17:15

that list, volunteers walked shoulder to

17:17

shoulder to ensure the most accurate

17:19

standing of. The forest floor. But.

17:22

On Monday, March Twelve. Two Thousand

17:25

And Twelve. So about twenty four

17:27

hours into the search efforts, police

17:29

announced in a press conference that

17:31

they had recovered. Two. Items

17:34

of Collins. His. Driver's

17:36

license and a tobacco pipe

17:38

they had apparently been smoking

17:40

that night. Strangely.

17:43

They. Were recovered loose on the

17:45

side of the road near the

17:47

intersection of setting Pulled Them Road

17:50

and State Route Three exactly one

17:52

point, three miles or two kilometers

17:54

west of where she had last

17:56

been seen. The. Intersection of Tuscan

17:58

com a row. and State

18:01

Route 3. So your first thought

18:03

is like why were two of

18:05

his items discarded over a mile

18:07

away, so like a 15 to

18:09

20 minute walk away from where

18:11

he had last been seen? Like

18:13

did somebody throw these items out

18:15

the window? Because why would Colin

18:17

specifically drop these two things, one

18:19

of which is usually kept inside

18:21

a wallet? Yeah I mean

18:23

to me it feels like if somebody

18:26

had done something to him they

18:28

would maybe want to discard of his license so

18:30

that it would be harder to identify a body

18:32

if a body was found. It's a weird place

18:35

to discard it since it's in the area that

18:37

he was last seen and where he went missing from

18:39

but it doesn't feel like if he was just walking

18:41

down the road why would he drop his pipe,

18:43

go into his wallet, pull out his driver's license

18:45

and drop it too. Like that doesn't make sense.

18:48

Yeah it doesn't make any sense to me either.

18:50

It feels more like a situation where these items

18:52

were thrown out of the car or they

18:54

got dropped in some way while something was

18:56

going on or at least

18:58

it does to me. So initially

19:00

it was incorrectly reported by local

19:03

media reports that police had recovered one

19:05

of Colin's shoes which felt like a clear

19:08

sign that foul play or at

19:10

least an accident had occurred. Now

19:13

although many shoes were found during

19:15

the search efforts none of them

19:17

belonged to Colin. So this didn't

19:19

end up being true but the

19:21

license or the the driver's license

19:23

sorry and the pipe were

19:25

accurate. Now with

19:27

the canvassing of the wooded areas

19:30

coming up empty law enforcement focused

19:32

their efforts on the area bodies

19:34

of water. Experts braved

19:36

the frigid temperatures of the water

19:38

to scour the Raquette pond and

19:40

river as well as the

19:42

Piercefield flow but there was no sign

19:45

of Colin. Search dogs

19:47

were given items of his just hoping that

19:49

they could lead the way to Colin or

19:51

at least the direction he had gone but

19:53

they couldn't trace him either. On

19:56

Saturday March 17th so one

19:59

week after disappearance, police

20:01

set up a checkpoint for drivers on

20:03

State Route 3, hoping that someone headed

20:05

out for their Saturday night plans had

20:08

been in the area the week

20:10

prior and seen or heard

20:12

something. Police stopped cars

20:14

to talk to people and hand out

20:16

missing flyers, but no tips

20:18

came in from their efforts that weekend.

20:21

Monday, March 19th, 2012

20:24

brought disappointing news for Collins family

20:26

and citizens. With

20:28

virtually no progress made, police

20:30

were downgrading the search efforts

20:33

to limited continuous status, meaning

20:35

that grand-scale searches organized by

20:37

law enforcement in conjunction with

20:39

community members would cease to

20:41

exist. Now, although their

20:44

efforts did continue, it was

20:46

beginning to seem less and

20:48

less likely that any connection

20:50

to Collins would be found.

20:52

The same day that they

20:54

relegated Collins search efforts to

20:56

limited continuous status, classes

20:58

resumed at Collins College, the State

21:01

University of New York at Brockport.

21:04

Police spoke with his classmates, just hoping

21:06

that one of them could turn over

21:08

a piece of information that would lead

21:10

them to Collins whereabouts, but none of

21:12

his peers had anything to say except

21:14

how well-liked Collins was as a friend

21:16

and a classmate. And I can't imagine

21:18

that they would have anything to say because this

21:21

is, you know, four hours away this college

21:23

is, you know, where he's attending. So,

21:25

like, why would they know anything about his plans

21:27

to go home? I think maybe, you know,

21:30

researching this from all angles to see

21:32

if he wanted to go off on his

21:34

own or whatever, kind of getting a grasp

21:36

more of what he was going through during that

21:38

time. Like, it makes sense, but yeah, I mean,

21:40

these people don't know anything. I mean, glad that

21:43

the due diligence was done, but, but yeah, I

21:45

didn't think that they were gonna find anything there.

21:47

I agree. So, met with

21:49

Dead End after Dead End. Police

21:51

monitored the social media of locals,

21:54

Collins friends from Tupper Lake, and

21:56

the party goers from that fateful

21:58

evening, as well as the rumors

22:00

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22:03

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22:05

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22:07

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22:09

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22:12

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30 days. Hello,

27:00

it was a harrowing time for his family.

27:02

His dad John claimed that it also

27:04

brought out the best in their small

27:06

community. Hundreds of

27:08

people assisted in the search and were there to

27:11

aid the family in any way that they could.

27:14

John remembers, quote, some people took

27:16

the whole week off and

27:18

there was food for three meals a

27:20

day for anyone that showed up and

27:22

searched. I mean, that's just incredible when

27:24

you think about it. Just

27:26

incredible. In the

27:28

week following Collins disappearance, Patty and John

27:30

announced a reward of $10,000. And

27:34

when that failed to bring forward any information about

27:36

their son's case, they raised it to $25,000. It

27:42

remained unclaimed and has to this

27:44

day. Winter

27:46

thought into spring, the snow melted

27:49

and the river swelled, but

27:51

the forest kept its secrets about

27:53

Collins whereabouts. As

27:55

the professional investigation and search efforts

27:57

wound down, Collins Family.

28:00

Mean vigilant taking the search

28:02

into their own hands. His

28:04

dad john kill us. begin to track

28:07

every discovery, tip and hunts. He plotted

28:09

out the areas that they searched and

28:11

where he still needed to focus more

28:13

time. But. Even he

28:16

was growing discouraged saying quote. There

28:18

comes a point where you realize

28:20

that you've looked every probable place.

28:23

Which makes you realize that you know

28:25

what they're searching all around this area

28:27

at every possible space. He could have

28:30

gone see a walking further than he

28:32

would having could have on that cold

28:34

nights. it's hard to believe that he's

28:36

out there, but instead that someone took

28:39

them off those streets. Well, exactly,

28:41

And that's why, like law enforcement,

28:43

his family began to entertain theories

28:45

that the locals new more than

28:47

they care to admit or divulge

28:49

and that those involved were likely

28:51

keeping quiet to protect one of

28:53

their own. I mean both

28:55

the town and the Internet were just a

28:57

bullies with theories about the feet the Cohen

29:00

had been met with. One.

29:02

Logical explanation as that he was hit

29:04

by a car because he had been

29:06

walking on the shoulder of an omelet

29:09

stretch of State Route three. It's certainly

29:11

feasible that someone struck Colon by accident

29:13

and in their panic, attempted to cover

29:15

it up. And although

29:17

this theory was investigated by both

29:19

law enforcement and the family's. No.

29:22

Credible evidence was found that would justify

29:24

it. No skid marks. You know, no

29:26

damage to trees, are shrubbery. know tire

29:29

tracks, no blood. I mean, does nothing

29:31

to indicate that such an accident took

29:33

place in that area on that night.

29:36

Yeah, and Collins brother Ian address this.

29:38

writing quotes Collins footprints were found in

29:41

the snow on the side of the

29:43

road following the highway. Towards Pierce

29:45

Field. The footprints ended

29:47

when he. Joined the road.

29:50

Considering. the amount of snow on

29:52

the roads and the lack of blood

29:54

and evidence of struggle it's unlikely he

29:56

was hit by a car but it's

29:58

not have out There's

30:00

also the possibility that Colin was subjected

30:02

to hypothermia after becoming lost in the

30:05

woods, but as we hinted at, his

30:07

family believes that this is improbable due

30:09

to the fact that he knew the

30:11

area so well and they look

30:13

so hard to find any trace of his body

30:15

in that whole area. But

30:17

obviously in the pitch black of the

30:20

wilderness, it's possible for anybody to become

30:22

turned around no matter how well they

30:24

may know the area, but still, it just didn't

30:26

seem to be the case. The

30:29

motorist who passed him again, Rich Rosen

30:31

Tredder, also noted that Colin seemed agitated.

30:34

So where my mind goes initially is

30:36

that he was scared of something, he

30:38

was running from something, he needed help,

30:40

he wanted to hitch a ride from

30:42

somebody because he was lost. This doesn't

30:45

automatically mean to me that he wasn't

30:47

in his right mind. This

30:49

means to me that he needed help. Sure,

30:52

yeah. I mean, he's an 18-year-old

30:54

kid and 20-degree temperature walking

30:56

miles to get home. Yeah, and he's

30:58

obviously trying to get home, he

31:00

can't reach anybody, so that's where

31:02

my mind goes. But some people,

31:04

of course, have pointed to the

31:07

possibility that he was on drugs

31:09

at the party, or he was

31:11

drugged at the party, which would

31:13

be especially suspicious after having gotten

31:15

into that fight. But because he

31:17

did sound sober on that voicemail

31:19

and there's no evidence to back

31:21

this up, the most persistent theory

31:23

presented in almost every discussion of

31:25

Colin's disappearance is that Colin

31:27

was killed by attendees of the party

31:29

that night. Tupper

31:32

Lake, which is a small town of about 3,000

31:34

people, is still lit up with theories

31:36

about what happened to him. Dozens

31:40

of Reddit and YouTube comments, theories

31:42

in his Facebook group, and other

31:44

online true crime forums all point

31:47

to the same perpetrator, Austin Toohey,

31:49

the teen who supposedly pulled over to

31:51

see if Colin needed a ride. Tupper

31:54

Lake locals are quick to sound off about

31:57

their opinions on the matter, and though the

31:59

stories differ, Every story leads

32:01

to the same basic conclusion. One

32:03

comment on Reddit from a member

32:05

of the community read quotes. He

32:08

got into a fight over drugs.

32:10

He was murdered, He was killed

32:12

over drugs, his body stuffed in

32:15

a blue plastic barrel drilled full

32:17

of holes and and into the

32:19

old mine shaft splash water hole.

32:21

have called cops told them to

32:24

check into Nathan to eat, question

32:26

him and they have done nothing.

32:28

not even look anymore. So.

32:31

Nathan to He is Austin's older brother

32:33

and he's apparently the man with whom

32:35

Colin was involved in an altercation. Remember.

32:39

Where those punches were thrown at that

32:41

party? Even. Now, twelve

32:43

years later, Most. Of the

32:46

theories still involve Austen in

32:48

some capacity. Another

32:50

commenter explain that Nathan and Colin were

32:53

involved in a fight over a girl

32:55

and that the brothers Nathan in Austen

32:57

Leader tracked him down on his walk

32:59

home. Overwhelmingly, the story

33:01

goes that the to hunted him down

33:04

in their car. Struck. Him

33:06

intentionally and then return to the party

33:08

with blood on their car saying that

33:10

they had just hit a deer. Apparently.

33:13

The young woman dating Austin at the

33:15

time identified in a few of the

33:18

explanations as Britney. Neeson had both a

33:20

brother and a father and local law

33:22

enforcement. Austin. And

33:25

Nathan were blamed for striking and killing

33:27

Poland. And. It's have to their

33:29

father Paul for help and concealing the

33:31

crime. Austin's.

33:33

Girlfriend at the time. Britney also was

33:35

said to have asked her dad and

33:37

brother in law enforcement to help cover

33:40

up what had happened. One.

33:42

Explanation Ended with quotes the

33:44

whole town does know. The.

33:47

Reddit comments or who claim to have

33:49

intel on this whole situation said that

33:51

they reported this. Tips of the police.

33:54

But. That it had been Jordan

33:56

nice and celebrities police officer brother.

33:58

He sits down. Hip. Jotting.

34:01

Down and apparently never following up on it.

34:03

Which means that they're essentially giving a tip

34:05

about the person taking your tip and the

34:07

family of that person, the friends of that

34:10

person. Like this is way. Too close

34:12

guide. it doesn't seem right. It

34:14

feels. It. Feels really suspicious.

34:18

Now. Another version of the story describes

34:20

that Colon had been in a relationship

34:22

with a woman who one of the

34:24

involved men had been seeing, and that

34:26

in a fit of jealous rage, Colin

34:28

was killed via the man's car. Thrown.

34:31

In the bed of a truck and

34:33

leader dismember by the guilty party and

34:35

his uncle. Multiple.

34:37

Claims read that Britney nice and officer

34:39

father was building a house of the

34:41

time and that Collins remains were thrown

34:43

into the foundation of the home and

34:46

leader mixed in with cement. Though.

34:48

The theories rains in severity and

34:51

method. They all point to the

34:53

involvement of only one family. The

34:55

same family is it's always so

34:57

hard. like if there's all these

34:59

different room or somebody saying. That

35:02

he was put in a barrel and important

35:04

a water hole. Somebody saying they he's. Buried.

35:07

Under Britney his dad's house. of those

35:09

are two very different saying the cell.

35:11

I do think it's important to look

35:13

into such theories because especially in such

35:15

a small town. At people talk people

35:17

here things sometimes those things are true,

35:20

but in this case there's so many

35:22

different types of things rolling around the

35:24

league you're saying leading to the same

35:26

people self. I do believe though, that

35:28

what they're saying is true in some

35:30

capacity, but which one is it. But

35:33

according to local lower the to a

35:35

family as well known in the area

35:37

and has a reputation for being that

35:40

troublemakers. Both Austin and

35:42

Nathan to we had been arrested

35:44

for drug use and possession, driving

35:46

under the influence and possession of

35:48

weapons. The boys cousin, Jordan Amelle,

35:50

who was there that night has

35:52

also been linked. To Collins disappearance just

35:55

based on his presence at the party

35:57

it's as well as in the car

35:59

when ostensibly. Dudley stop to offer

36:01

calling a ride. Which. Also,

36:03

just kind of tells us a little bit more

36:05

about that. If Austin and call and

36:08

we're not friends and in fact they were

36:10

more like enemies, it doesn't seem that Austin

36:12

would pull over ability by. You want to

36:14

do want to ride like a genuine ride?

36:16

You know it doesn't seem like he would

36:18

do that. Just specially p Just got in

36:20

a fight with his older brother Nathan like.

36:23

I don't. I don't know how

36:25

genuine. This. Feels that you

36:27

know Austin would offer him the right, which

36:29

is why I either don't. Think that he

36:31

offered him a ride or thought that he

36:33

or think that he was offering him a

36:36

ride. Not. To actually take him

36:38

home? But to do. Something to jump from

36:40

the various reasons. Exactly So, just

36:42

three months after. Calling vanished,

36:45

Jordan was the driver in. A

36:47

car crash that killed one of two of

36:49

his passengers. Sell Theirs is a lot of

36:51

different things going on with this family and.

36:54

Yet. The misfortune of the

36:56

family continued when and Twenty Twenty

36:58

One Austin actually passed away after

37:00

a lengthy battle with his health.

37:03

He took to Facebook in March of

37:05

Twenty Twenty One to announce that he

37:07

had undergone open heart surgery, but said

37:09

that he was doing better. And was

37:11

leaving the hospital soon. but later

37:13

that year he took a turn

37:15

for the worse contracting. And infection

37:17

after his surgery and he passed

37:20

away on September eleventh. Twenty Twenty

37:22

One at the age of twenty

37:24

sevens. Austen. Left

37:26

behind an eight year old son of whom

37:28

he shared. with his ex girlfriend from years

37:30

prior. Britney nice in. The

37:33

later started dating. Another young woman named

37:35

Britney and the To had recently become

37:37

engaged and she in Austin shared a

37:39

one year old son and she was

37:41

pregnant. with their first daughter. His

37:44

obituary read a quote. Although Austen got

37:46

into his fair share of trouble, he

37:49

was in the process of turning his

37:51

life around. so

37:53

fanning the flames of the rumors surrounding

37:55

this family who had been in the

37:58

adirondack for generations was a press announcing

38:00

the search of a farm property in Edwards,

38:02

New York, which is an hour away

38:05

from Tupper Lake. According

38:07

to reports from locals, though this information

38:09

was not released to the media from

38:12

publications nor from the police, it's

38:14

believed to be the Tewi family's property.

38:18

Just a few months prior to

38:20

the search, a fire of suspicious

38:22

origin broke out in one of

38:24

the buildings and burned down a

38:26

decades-old farmhouse. Police

38:29

had supposedly been attempting to obtain a

38:32

search warrant for the property long before

38:34

the fire, but they weren't

38:36

able to obtain one until after the

38:38

fire, so is it possible that any

38:41

evidence was obliterated that they would have

38:43

found previously? Absolutely. In

38:46

an announcement to the public, the police

38:48

wrote that the search was, quote, ongoing,

38:50

and that they had spent multiple days

38:52

at that property. The

38:55

farm, known to locals as Old Noble

38:57

Farm, was first visited by state police

38:59

with a warrant in November of 2020.

39:03

They started with a digger, focusing on a circle

39:05

of land about 30 feet in

39:07

diameter. They then

39:10

brought in a backhoe for an even

39:12

more invasive search. A

39:14

state police public information officer wrote of

39:16

the search, quote, State

39:19

police spent weeks coming in and out of the property.

39:31

Now, nearly 12 years after Cullen

39:33

walked out of that house party to

39:36

vanish into thin air, there are still

39:38

no answers for his bereaved family. Despite

39:41

the apparently extensive searches on this

39:43

farm property, and despite the rumors

39:45

that the whole town already knows

39:47

who is responsible, the

39:50

most pressing question remains, though, if

39:53

there had been a few dozen people at the party that

39:55

night, how had no one seen

39:57

anything, or heard anything, Or

40:00

did they, and multiple people are just keeping a

40:02

secret? Now we're just

40:04

left to subsist on online theories,

40:06

local rumors, and town lore. But

40:10

one resident had an explanation for this. That

40:13

everyone who knew anything kept quiet

40:15

because there had been underage drinking

40:17

at the party, and anybody attending school

40:19

who was caught at the party could

40:21

have been punished or worse, banned

40:23

from playing sports, or if they

40:26

were in college potentially losing their

40:28

scholarship. For years

40:30

police printed a plea in

40:32

local newspapers asking hunters to

40:34

be wary of remains and look for anything

40:36

out of the ordinary, but nothing has

40:39

surfaced relating to Collins' case.

40:41

And to this day, there are

40:44

still remnants of the disappearance that

40:46

the search and the devastating loss

40:48

left behind. Missing

40:50

posters can still be found displayed

40:52

in local businesses. Collins'

40:55

brother, Linden, claimed that in the aftermath

40:57

of his brother's disappearance, he started heading

40:59

to the next town over to grocery

41:01

shop in order to avoid

41:03

the pitying glances and awkward conversations.

41:07

Business at the Gillis' woodworking shop suffered

41:09

because so many were uncomfortable speaking to

41:12

his parents in the wake of the

41:14

devastating loss, even when they needed support

41:16

the most. Calling

41:19

Gillis was six feet tall and weighed about

41:21

170 pounds. He

41:24

had blond hair and blue eyes. He

41:27

was last seen wearing a white American

41:29

Eagle brand shirt with black stripes, blue

41:32

Levi jeans, and Nike

41:34

brand tennis shoes. He

41:36

had with him an orange LL

41:38

Bean brand backpack, which contained a

41:40

black and red reversible LL Bean

41:42

jacket. If you

41:45

have any information, please call

41:47

the State Police of Tupper Lake at

41:50

518-873-2750. Thank

41:59

you. Thank

42:07

you so much everybody for listening to this

42:09

episode of Going West. Yes, thank you guys

42:11

so much for listening to this episode and

42:13

on Friday we'll have an all new case

42:15

for you guys to dive into. I'm

42:17

so glad that at least this

42:19

case has seemingly

42:21

concrete theories but at the same time

42:23

I cannot believe that after all these

42:26

years police have not been able to

42:28

make a solid connection even though everybody

42:30

in town is saying essentially the same

42:32

thing. Yeah, it's one of the most

42:34

frustrating cases because it feels like it's right

42:37

there, like it's within their grasp but

42:39

it also feels so far away. It's

42:42

just unreal to me, hopefully there will be

42:45

answers and the people responsible will

42:47

be held responsible for what they

42:49

did because just no part

42:51

of me thinks that he just died

42:53

out there from natural causes especially because

42:55

they searched that whole area so well

42:57

they didn't find any of his belongings.

42:59

He had multiple things with him, only

43:01

his ID and his pipe

43:04

but what about his backpack, his jacket, any of

43:06

his other clothes, his phone, his wallet, where's

43:08

everything else, where is he? Yeah and

43:11

I mean even police felt that this

43:13

could be a likely scenario

43:15

because they went ahead and searched that

43:17

farm so it's like if

43:19

they're thinking that that could be you know

43:22

like a solid lead then maybe it really

43:24

is. Yeah, it seems like they fully

43:26

believe that foul play is involved in

43:28

this case. I mean that's exactly what

43:30

they're still doing, they're looking for more

43:32

evidence so I hope that they find

43:34

it. Thank you guys so much for

43:37

tuning in, again thank you to Sarah,

43:39

Autumn and Kerry for recommending this case

43:41

and sorry. I was just

43:44

going to say and please share this episode

43:46

because the more ears that hear

43:48

this episode, that hear about Cullen's story

43:50

the better, we want to keep this

43:52

story out there in the light. Absolutely,

43:55

so thank you guys, we will see

43:57

you on Friday. Alright guys, so

43:59

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