May 16, 2021

Not forgotten

Hello dear readers, I haven't been able to write for some time now, largely due to a career change where I am writing and editing all day. It has become apparent to me that there are more cases of missing young men than I can keep up with. I will continue to write when I can and, from time to time, provide some observations. I appreciate all of you for hanging in there with me. :)

June 7, 2019

09/18/98: Robert Kovak, 24, Blacksburg, VA

Robert Kovak
The remains of Robert Kovak have been found. See update below.

Robert Kovak grew up in rural Rivesville, West Virginia, a rural coal mining town in the northern part of the state, home to roughly 900 people. He was described as modest, detail-oriented, dedicated to getting things done, friendly and likable.

Kovak was a 1991 graduate of Fairmont Senior High School. He received his undergraduate degree at Fairmont State University near his home in Rivesville, then was accepted into the architecture graduate program at Virginia Tech. It was his first experience at a large university and he rose to the top of his class. He enjoyed living in Blacksburg, where he was close enough to ride his bike to class or to drive home to visit family. He and his brother Michael were just one year apart and always very close. They got together as frequently as they could, especially in the summer when school was out.

On Friday, September 18, 1998, Kovak's mother, Jacqueline Kovack, tried to call him repeatedly, but he wasn't home. After several more tries on Saturday and Sunday with no result and no call back, she became very worried.

Kovak's roommates said they seen him packing clothing earlier in the day. They thought maybe he planned to attend a West Virginia University football game on Saturday. Now his blue laundry hamper was gone, so they assumed he had heading home for the weekend. They estimated he must have left around 5 p.m. He never arrived.



Authorities retrace Kovak's steps

9/18/98  4:30 p.m. - Kovak is positively identified getting gas at the Wilco station on 825 N. Main Street in Blacksburg. He speaks briefly with the gas station attendant, saying he is on his way home to visit friends. He paid for his gas with a check, then took off in his red Geo Tracker, traveling up Progress Street toward his Terrace View apartment.(1) His vehicle is found abandoned four days later.

9/18/98  5:21 p.m.  - Video surveillance captures Kovak withdrawing $80 from an ATM at the Freedom First Credit Union on South Main Street in Blacksburg.


9/18/98  5:45 p.m. - A fellow architecture student sees Kovak in Cowgill Hall as he steps onto the elevator at the second floor. He has on blue jeans and a polo shirt. She describes him as looking exhausted, with "bags under his puffy eyes." He had also shaved his beard, something that, to her, made him appear heavier. He asks how she is doing, but nothing further, then she exits onto the third floor. She was supposed to see Rob later that night at a party, but she heard through mutual friends that he would not be there. If her timing is accurate, this may be the last sighting of Robert Kovack.

9/19/98 4:30 a.m. - Kovak's very good friend from college, Jason Yoho, who was also from Rivesville, drove the same route Kovak was supposed to have taken, only 12 hours later. He told investigators he did not recall a vehicle parked where Rob's Tracker was found, and he could not recall a vehicle being there on his way back on Sunday.

9/19/98  8:00 - 9:00 a.m. - A married couple from Morgantown, WV stops at the Gorge Bridge from 8 to 9 a.m. while traveling to Myrtle Beach, SC. The couple tells police that they always notice vehicles parked on the side of the road, but they did not see a red Tracker.

9/20/98 - Jason Yoho does not recall seeing a vehicle parked on the side of the road on his way home on Sunday.

Kovak's Geo Tracker, similar to this one,
was found at the intersection of US Route 19
and Lansing Road near Fayetteville, West Virginia,
 just beyond the New River Gorge Bridge.
9/22/98 - Kovak's red soft-top 1992 Geo Tracker is found abandoned and out of gas near Fayetteville, West Virginia, just a half mile past a gas station. The keys are not in the ignition and the doors are locked. There were no signs of a struggle or foul play. Oddly, the 4-wheel drive in engaged, despite mild weather.

The vehicle was operational, but it looked dusty. It had also been broken into. A slit had been cut into the soft-top canvas in order to unlock the passenger door. An amp had been taken from the rear cargo area and likely also the hamper Robert had last been seen with. (A resident of Craig County later reported finding an empty blue clothes hamper, missing its lid, on her property, but it wasn't positively identified as Kovak's.) Police theorize that rafters on the New River noticed the abandoned vehicle and broke into it to steal from it. The crime lab found one partial latent fingerprint and one palm print they couldn't identify.

According to his father and brother, those so familiar with that stretch of road would gas up before reaching Fayetteville. They'd know the next station isn't for another 15 miles. It then seems odd that Kovak would bypass a gas station and risk potentially having to leave his beloved vehicle on the side of the road while he fetched gas. Kovak's Tracker was the first vehicle he had ever purchased himself. He was known for keeping it immaculate.

Michael Kovak has said he believes that something happened to his brother in Blacksburg. He told the Collegiate Times, "Where we grew up, you held your own or got picked on. He was small and scrawny, but he was scrappy." He added that his brother was "one of the nicest guys in the world, but if someone tried to pick a fight...he wouldn't shy away." He speculated that someone drove his car as far north as they could, using the 4-wheel drive so that the car would run out of gas quicker. The person wanted it to appear as though Kovak had run out of gas.


Search effort

Dog teams, whitewater rafters and National Park Service rangers helped in multiple searches of the vicinity of where Robert's car was found. Their searches included door-to-door visits to homes on Lansing Road and the Canyon Rim area. State police also conducted helicopter sweeps, and Rob's family and friends walked the area searching for clues. Nothing was found. The area is said to be an immense space near a national forest where search parties would have difficulty finding someone.

When investigators and family searched Robert Kovack's Terrace View apartment in Blacksburg, they discovered that his roommates had packed up nearly all of his things into boxes. They had also taken apart his bed before it was ever inspected, despite direct requests from the Kovak family to stay away. No architecture supplies were found, just a single pen and two stamps. But it seems most of his personal belongings were still in his room, such as his backpack, bike, unopened mail (including a bill for rent), shaving kit, toothbrush and toothpaste. So they may have been trying to save his family the heartache of packing up his belongings.


Remains found

New River Gorge Bridge
(See aerial video here.)
In March 2016, a work crew found skeletal human remains under the 800-feet tall New River Gorge Bridge near where Robert’s Geo Tracker was found abandoned. The area where the remains were found was treacherous and overgrown, an easy place to overlook a body.

DNA tests confirmed that the remains belonged to Robert Kovak. His wallet with his driver's license and student ID was also found near the remain, along with his car keys.

Evidence on the remains suggest that Kovack was hit by a car, then fell from the bridge.(3)  News reports are not saying whether the death was a hit and run, but it sounds like a logical possibility. The investigation is ongoing.

While Kovak did have $12,000 in credit card debt, police do not believe he committed suicide. The young man was nearing graduation and had been hired to work for Blackwood and Associates, an architecture firm in Richmond, VA, after graduation. He also had $1,500 in his bank account from his job as a teaching assistant at Virginia Tech and he was considered a happy-go-lucky guy.

He was hard working, but he was considered a happy-go-lucky guy. In his free time, he played softball, went mountain biking and volunteered for Habitat for Humanity.



Case Details
Name/age: Robert Leroy Kovak, 24
Last seen: 9/18/98, Blacksburg, Virginia
Date Of Birth: October 30, 1973
Physical Description: White male, 6'3"; 175 lbs, dark brown hair; brown eyes, wearing
blue jeans and either polo shirt or T-shirt and watch on left wrist.

If you have any information, call the Blacksburg Police Department at 540-961-1150 or West Virginia State Police at 304-469-2915. Refer to the Agency Case Number (6210-10254)



Sources
(1) Fleming, Caleb. (7 March 2009). Decadelong disappearance. Retrieved September 9, 2010 from
http://www.collegiatetimes.com/stories/13746/decadelong-disappearance

(2) Baker, K.C. (March 11, 2016). Family of Robert Kovack, Virginia Tech Grad Student Missing Since 1998, Waits Anxiously As Authorities Investigate Human Remains. Retrieved June 7, 2019 from https://people.com/crime/robert-kovacks-distraught-family-are-human-remains-connected-to-missing-son/

(3) Demmit, Jacob. (March 14, 2017). DNA confirms remains belong to Virginia Tech student missing since 1998. Retrieved June 7, 2019 from https://www.roanoke.com/news/local/blacksburg/dna-confirms-remains-belong-to-virginia-tech-student-missing-since/article_56a64b59-9fd0-506f-833e-bbfc3121047a.html

Published: 9/26/2010    Last updated: June 7, 2019

07/08/07: Brian Sullivan, 19, Gates, NY

Brian Sullivan's case has likely been solved. His remains are still missing. See details below.
Brian Sullivan - Gates, NY
Last seen 7/8/07

Brian W. Sullivan, 19, was last seen at 5:48 am on July 8, 2007 buying breakfast at the Burger King drive-thru window on Chili Ave in Gates, NY.
At 6:10 a.m., "Sully" as he was sometimes known, left a voicemail message for a friend. It was the last time Sullivan was heard from.

Later that day, Sullivan's vehicle, a red 1995 Pontiac Sunfire with New York registration DXU 3048, was found in front of a 100–acre wooded area on nearby Lettington Avenue. A Burger King receipt, stamped at 5:48 a.m., and wrappers were found inside the car, along with Sullivan's cell phone charger and bank card. There were no signs of foul play in or around the car.

Sullivan graduated from Churchville-Chili High School. At the time of his disappearance, he was a student at Monroe Community College. He was considering a career in social work or the music industry and had just ordered hundreds of dollars of sound mixing equipment and was weighing his options.

While Sullivan was unemployed, his family says he was not facing any personal problems and was looking toward the future. The night before he disappeared, he watched a movie at a friend's house and he was looking forward to a big family dinner on 7/8 with his favorite food--ribs. He had also just learned that his sister was expecting a baby and Brian was he was thrilled and excited to be an uncle.

Update: In 2016, a confidential informant told investigators that Brian had been stabbed by a male who frequented the Chili Avenue area. The suspect, Derrick Murray, allegedly told acquaintances that they were going drugs together when Sullivan made a sexual advance. Then Murray stabbed Sullivan several times. Investigators learned through other sources that Murray allegedly enlisted the help of his family to hide Brian's body and car. Murray told one source, "they will never find him if I don't tell them."

Unfortunately Murray died of natural causes just as police were closing in. The Sullivan family is offering $2,500 reward for information that leads to Brian’s whereabouts.Crime Stoppers also has an additional reward. You can call (585) 423-9300 with any tips.



Case Details

Name/age: Brian Sullivan
Age at Disappearance: 19 yrs.
Date of Birth: 12/05/87
Last seen: 07/07/07, Gates, NY
Residence: Churchville, NY
Physical description: White male, 5'11," 170 pounds, black hair, blue eyes, full beard
Last seen wearing: wearing blue jean shorts, a blue pinstriped button down long sleeve shirt, flip flops and a green baseball cap.
Notes: According to NamUs, he may be using the name Chuck or Charles Briswold.
Links: MySpace, Help Find Brian Sullivan, NamUs
Investigating Police Agency: Monroe County Sheriff, (585) 753-4177, nysvicap@troopers.state.ny.us (e-mail)


Sources

Molloy, Matt. 2017 Oct 24. The Untold Story of the Brian Sullivan Murder. https://13wham.com/news/special-reports/the-untold-story-of-brian-sullivans-murder. Retrieved 7 June 2019.



Published 3/2/11. Last updated: 6/7/19.

January 6, 2019

When Your Child Goes Missing

by Paula Lookabill

Can you imagine someone you love disappearing? I can’t. Yet every year thousands of people go missing. Just gone. The people that love them have no idea what happened, or if they are still alive. Which brings another devastating string of thoughts. What if they are alive? Where are they? Are they safe? Are they scared? Are they hungry? Are they too hot or too cold? Now, imagine that loved one is a missing child. Your child.

Most of us can’t imagine that happening, nor do we want to. Yet that is exactly what happened to a mother in Alma, Arkansas, on June 9, 1995. Six-year old Morgan Chauntel Nick was playing with friends at a ballpark in Alma when she went missing. Her mom, Colleen Nick, was watching a Little League baseball game and hesitantly agreed to let Morgan go catch lightning bugs (fireflies) with friends. It was approximately 10:45 p.m. when Morgan and her friends headed back to their parents. When the children reached the parking lot, they all stopped to empty sand from their shoes. Morgan stopped by her mom’s vehicle, just a few dozen feet away her friends. When her friends finished, they realized the game was over and started back to the field where they met up with their parents. Realizing that Morgan wasn’t with the others, Colleen asked the children where her daughter was. They told her that Morgan was out by their car emptying her shoes, but when Colleen reached the parking lot, Morgan was nowhere to be found. Her friends reported they had seen Morgan talking to a “creepy” man while she was putting her shoes back on. That was the last time she was seen or heard from. 

A huge search ensued at the ballpark that night and has since spanned the country over the last 23 years. There have been many tips over the years about what happened that night, as well as persons who may have been involved. Unfortunately, none of those leads have ever brought any news of what happened that fateful night. Morgan’s case was made more difficult because of the lack of physical evidence. In addition, no one saw the actual abduction.

There have been many suspect’s throughout the years. The most prominent is a man who stands about 6’ tall, weighs approximately 180 pounds and has a scruffy beard and salt-and-pepper hair. He was driving an older model red truck with a white camper shell. Morgan has blonde hair and blue eyes. At the time of the abduction, Morgan was 4’ tall and weighed approximately 55 pounds. She was wearing a green Girl Scout t-shirt, blue jean shorts and white tennis shoes.

This post would not be complete without mentioning the work of Morgan’s mom, Colleen Nick.  Since her daughter’s disappearance she has worked tirelessly to bring Morgan home. At one point, shortly following Morgan’s disappearance, Colleen made the Alma volunteer Fire Department, which was next door to the Police Department, her home and search headquarters.  

In 1996, Colleen started the Morgan Nick Foundation, which provides a support network to parents and families of all missing children. The foundation helps provide intervention, education, and legislation. You can take a look at their website at morgannickfoundation.com.

Unfortunately Morgan is still missing. If you have any information regarding her case, please contact the Alma Police Department at 1-479-632-3333. Or, you can call the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678).

July 29, 2018

Theory on Mysterious Deaths

- Daniel Albrecht, guest contributor

First and foremost, my deepest sympathies go out to all the families who have lost their sons in a most horrific way. My heart truly goes out to each one of you.

When I first came across the strange abductions of literally hundreds of young men across the upper Midwest, I thought there might be a connection to the Franklin Savings and Loan Scandal from the late 80 ́s out of Omaha, Nebraska. I will not go into detail about it here, as many are aware of these unspeakable events. But for those who have not heard, the Franklin Scandal was a nationwide network of pedophiles operating at the highest levels of government which ran straight up to the Reagan, Bush White House. A few names for you to investigate, should you choose to do so.

Former Senator and attorney, John DeCamp of Nebraska, who not only blew the case wide open, but published a book with the title,” The Franklin Cover Up.” There is also a documentary that was never broadcast called “A Conspiracy of Silence.” This can be found all over on YouTube. Boystown in Nebraska was a major source for the prostitution of young boys. The late Ted Gunderson, who was the former head of the FBI for Southern California, and after his retirement, conducted extensive research on this, and many other subjects. Finally, the late and former Senator Nancy Schaffer who, along with her husband, was executed in her bed while asleep in May of 2012. She was ready to publish her book on the nationwide Child Services Protection Organization, which is nothing more than a cover for human trafficking.

After having read many, many cases on these young men, I have concluded that there is no direct connection to the Franklin Scandal, but I do fully believe it is part of the same network. I can, however, conclude that this is NOT the work of a single individual, responsible for this mass abduction. Not only are there hundreds of cases in the United States, but Canada, and Europe as well. Since 2008, at least 80 bodies of young men, fitting the same description, in the city of Manchester, England have been discovered in the canals that run through the city, all under the very same circumstances as those in the States. There is also a case in Germany, as recently as July 18th, 2014, where a young man on vacation in Bulgaria, simply ran off into a field, completely disoriented, and has never been seen since.

Let me state that I do not buy into the theory that these young men simply disappeared, committed suicide, or “accidentally” fell into a body of water and drown. I believe without question, they were all, every single one of them, abducted, used for experimentation, and finally dumped into bodies of water to make it look accidental. I will also not use the term, “Smiley Face Killer,” as this is highly misleading, and diverts from the true intention of what is really going on. It also belittles the seriousness of these cases. I believe all these “smiley faces” found at the scenes where the bodies have been recovered are a tactic to keep people running down the wrong path. Or it is someone ́s very sick joke.

In almost every single case, these young men have been out celebrating, or just relaxing and enjoying time with family and friends. Every young man that has been targeted is athletic, strong, intelligent, and is either still in college, or has just finished. It all takes place in the early hours of the morning, and usually during the winter months, when suddenly, for some unexplainable reason, they exit the establishment, become extremely disoriented, and their behavior is not only erratic, it does not fit how they usually act.

This leads us to the first point. All these men have been deliberately sought out and targeted, which means that over a course of days, or weeks before they vanish, have been observed, or even stalked. This leads us to the second point that those who have been targeted, are also being watched in the establishments they are in by the people who plan the abduction. The main reason I believe this second point is that in several of the cases, these young men are asked to leave the place, and then once confronted by law enforcement, or family members, deny that they were asked to leave. A “sudden” memory lapse seems to be a recurring theme.

There has been much conjecture as to how the men have been put into such a state. One suggestion is having been drugged, by slipping something into their drinks. This is a very plausible conclusion. I believe this in some of the cases. There are other cases, however, where the young men were on the phone with people, talking normally, but were also very disoriented. Some have also sent text messages, giving the appearance of seeming normal. In the many cases where the young men are seen on video surveillance, you can clearly see the strange behavior, such as acting drunk, walking around in a state of confusion, looking like they will be sick, etc. This is a strong indicator that they were, without question, under the influence of some outside force, not of their own choosing.

This is the headline from an article, and I will post the link, so you can read for yourself in it ́s entirety.

Electromagnetic and Informational Weapons: The Remote Manipulation of the Human Brain
https://www.globalresearch.ca/electromagnetic-and-informational-weapons-the-remote- manipulation-of-the-human-brain-2/5458103

This is just one of dozens of excellent articles on this subject.

This all leads us now to the main question of why? Why is this happening? Why target young, intelligent college-aged men?

It is a well-known fact that for centuries, wicked governments all over the world, have used their own populous for experiments. The United States is no exception. There is ample information on many of the things the US government has done to its people.
The hideous 1932 Tuskegee Syphilis Study. 200 black men diagnosed with syphilis are never told of their illness, are denied treatment, and instead are used as human guinea pigs in order to follow the progression and symptoms of the disease. They all subsequently die from syphilis, their families never told that they could have been treated.

The disgusting incident in 1940 in Chicago, where four hundred prisoners were infected with Malaria to study the effects of new and experimental drugs to eradicate the disease.

The LSD experiments, spraying cities with infectious diseases, the list goes on and on. As time continues to move forward, so do the technologies and their methods of deployment. In other words, technologies have become far more sophisticated than we can possibly imagine, and in usual style, they must be tested on an unsuspecting population.

That is what I believe is happening to these bright, young men. I believe because of their athletic appearances, their intelligence, and their young age, they have been chosen for some sinister governmental experimentation. Once a specific young man has been chosen, they are then either drugged, or have some sort of technology used against them to put them under the unusual circumstances witnessed by those out with them, as well as what is seen on surveillance camera coverage. For example, wandering around aimlessly in a field, thinking that person knows where they are, and at the same time, talking on the phone to a parent, and being somewhere completely different than thought. There have also been cases where the young man was on the phone, sounding completely normal to the other person, and without warning, sound literally terrified by something they are seeing. The connection is lost, and that person is no longer reachable.

Once taken, they are brought to some unknown location, horribly used as guinea pigs, tortured, and either not responding to whatever they are being subjected to, no longer being useful, or simply dying from the experiments, are brought back very close to where they were taken. This would also explain why, when searches are conducted, especially in and around water, no body is found until days, weeks, or even months later, in the exact spot where the searches took place. As stated above, it is my belief that a “smiley face” is then drawn, or spray painted to divert everyone involved in the investigation from the truth.

In conclusion, I wish to emphatically state, in no way is this theory a proven one, nor do I wish to make all the families who have lost their loved ones seem like this is a cold-hearted, wild and conspiratorial sounding explanation. I have the utmost sympathy for them all.

I realize that to some, this entire proposal seems ludicrous, even far-fetched, but in all cases I have read, there have been no signs of foul play, sexual assault, or any other indications helpful in determining the demise of these young men. I can only conclude this to be the work of highly sophisticated technology implemented by rogue members of governmental agencies who have yet to be exposed for the horrific crimes they are committing against their own populous.

April 4, 2016

02/13/16: Zachary Marr, 22, Boston, MA

Zachary Marr.
Photo credit: Boston police
Our thoughts go out to Zachary Marr and his loved ones.


Zachary Marr, 22, was last seen on Saturday, February 13, 2016 at the Bell in Hand Tavern near Boston's Faneuil Hall. Marr, who lived in Harvard, MA, and was a student at Mount Wachusett Community College had taken the train to celebrate his birthday with his three cousins. The group, according to a family member, was from the Leominster area of central Massachusetts and not real familiar with Boston.

After being dropped off at the train station by his father, Matthew, and riding the train, Zachary's cousin, Amanda Marr, picked him up from North Station at about 6 p.m. According to the Boston Globe on February 16, "The two drove back to her apartment in South Boston, where she prepared dinner for him: chicken, chips, guacamole, and hummus. She said they had a drink before leaving to go to the Bell in Hand art about 10 p.m."

At around 1:30 am, Zachary sent Amanda a text that he was going out to smoke a cigarette, something he had done several times that night. He was seen on surveillance at 1:40 am, standing outside the Boston Public Market, across the street from the tavern. It was a weekend that saw record cold temperatures of 9 below, but Marr just had on a pullover sweatshirt. He had left his coat in the coat check.

"He sent me a Snapchat saying they're not letting me back in, let's leave," said his cousin Amanda, "I texted him and said where are you, and he said out front and that was at 1:41 am." It was apparently last call.

One of the released surveillance images does show Marr still in front of the Market as late as 1:44 am. But by about 1:51 am, after Amanda and her cousins grabbed their coats and got outside, he was gone.

"I was trying to stay calm," Amanda told the Globe. She hoped he'd just gone for a walk, run into a friend or met a woman, and she'd hear from him later that day. But he didn't turn up.


Photo credit: Boston Public Market / NECN.com.


     Photo credit: Boston Public Market / NECN.com.

Wide shot of Bell in Hand Tavern with Boston Public Market at left.
Google image search. Photo credit: Bill Mueller, June 2015.

The restaurant said in a statement that they provided video surveillance to the police, which shows Marr did not attempt to re-enter the Bell in Hand. Video shows other customers leaving and re-entering after 1:20 a.m. and they said Marr would not have been denied access. The restaurant said another video shows Marr in front of a garage, heading toward the Surface Artery.

The Boston Globe has reported that additional surveillance video shows Marr on a walkway, then walking on train tracks before disappearing into into the river underneath the Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Memorial Bridge. 


Search team near Zakim Bridge at Nashua Street.
Photo credit: Caitlin Fichtell, 
The Boston Globe, February 23, 2016

Marr's missing person's poster describes him as 5-feet-8, 175 pounds with blue eyes and short brown hair and beard. If you have additional information, call Boston Police at 617-343-4571 or Harvard, Massachusetts, Police Sgt. Coates at 978-456-1212.


Zachary's body found

Two passerbys spotted Marr's body in the water in the locks near Paul Revere Park in the Leverett Circle area at about 5:45 p.m. on Tuesday, March 15, 2016. Preliminary evidence indicated his death is consistent with a fall into very cold water.  The Suffolk County District Attorney's Office later added that he did not appear to suffer any trauma. Investigators have not announced an official cause of death, though they said there is no sign of foul play. 

Amanda Marr said Zachary had a few drinks that night, "but it was nothing out of the ordinary." 
Matthew Marr told the Boston Globe that he suspected Zachary might have tried to swim in the Charles River, or fell through the walkway.

Marr's paternal grandmother had passed away from breast cancer in January, and according to The Boston Globe, he was planning to help his father pack up her apartment that weekend. He had been very close to her, and while he was under some stress, nothing has been reported to indicate Marr was depressed. Marr, a graduate of Leominster High School, was a student at Mount Waschusett Community College. He was taking five classes and was doing well in school. In addition to being a full time student, he was also working full time at Quiet Logistics. The company provides shipping fulfillment for high-end retail fashion brands. Marr had just been promoted.

A funeral Mass for Zachary Marr was held Wednesday, March 23 at St. Anne’s Church, 75 King St. Littleton with burial in Bellevue Cemetery in Harvard.  



Sources:

Manning, Allison. Zachary Marr's death a 'horrible accident,' family says. March 16, 2016. Accessed January 17, 2019 from https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2016/03/16/zachary-marrs-death-a-horrible-accident-family-says

Claffey, Jason. Zach Marr's Body Recovered. March 15, 2016. Accessed January 17, 2019 from https://patch.com/massachusetts/westford/zach-marrs-body-recovered-0

Dore, David. Father speaks after missing LHS graduate’s body found. March 18, 2016. Leominster Champion. Accessed April 4, 2016 from http://www.leominsterchamp.com/news/2016-03-18/Front_Page/Father_speaks_after_missing_LHS_graduates_body_fou.html

Ellement, John R. Investigators search Charles River for missing man. February 24, 2016. Boston Globe.com. Accessed April 4, 2016 from https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2016/02/24/divers-resume-search-for-zachary-marr-charles-river/JTO72xGL18zstqiM9rWA0H/story.html

Palumbo, Alysha and Flanigan, Kaitlin. New Images Released as Search for Missing 22-Year-Old Man Continues. February 15, 2016. NECN.com. Accessed April 4, 2016 from http://www.necn.com/news/new-england/New-Images-Boston-Search-22-Year-Old-Zachary-Marr-Harvard-Massachusetts-368845361.html

Ransom, Jan. Police search Charles River, harbor for missing Harvard man. Boston Globe.com. February 17, 2016. Accessed April 4, 2016 from https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2016/02/17/officials-search-boston-harbor-for-missing-harvard-man/IyN8vLWFejiQeuT7irMfJO/story.html

Ransom, Jan. Celebration in Boston turns into missing person search. February 16, 2016. Accessed April 4, 2016 from https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2016/02/15/amissing/6BE0O8J9YdUfZMkyit9OqM/story.html

Tavern says video shows missing Harvard man heading toward Surface Artery. February 15, 2016. Accessed April 4, 2016 from http://www.wcvb.com/news/tavern-says-video-shows-missing-harvard-man-heading-toward-surface-artery/38007938

May 4, 2015

05/01/2015: Robert Songtag, River Falls, WI

Update: Body of missing UW-River Falls student found
Day two of the search for 20-year-old Robert "Bobby" S. Sontag resulted in the discovery of his body on the Kinnickinnic River below the upper dam.
Sontag’s body was found around 1 p.m. Monday, May 4, a day after he had been reported missing and a search to find him had begun.
According to River Falls police, a wallet with a photo I.D. and other documentation was found on the body that helped identify Sontag.
An investigation into the circumstances of his death is ongoing.
River Falls police say Sontag, a UWRF student, was last seen in the area of the 400 block of South Main Street around 2 a.m. Friday.
He didn’t show up for college classes Friday and wasn’t seen or heard from since. His pickup truck wasn’t moved.
His disappearance was first reported to police Sunday at 3 p.m.
Sontag was last seen walking home from a bar with a friend. The two then went their separate ways.
Authorities believe alcohol was involved in Sontag’s disappearance.
Police and firefighters began searching for the young man later Sunday afternoon. Firefighters went out on Lake George in a boat to look.
Those efforts were interrupted by a thunderstorm but resumed before being called off because of darkness.
Monday morning they started again with help from Pierce County Sheriff deputies and the use of a quieter air boat.
Deputies in the boat peered into the waters of Lake George and the river, looking for a body. A sonar device was submerged as part of the search effort.
Other officers and firefighters were posted along the upper dam by the old power plant. A body below was finally spotted from a distance and a group descended the cliff to just below the dam.
Sontag was a junior majoring in dairy science at UWRF.

UWRF has counseling services available to students, located in Hagestad Hall.