Todd Geib, 22, was last seen at a keg party and bonfire in the early morning hours of Sunday, June 12, 2005. The party of 100 people was held behind an apple orchard in a rural part of Casnovia, Michigan, a marshy area containing 6 miles of hip-high grass. Geib apparently left the party to walk to his cousin's home at 291 Moon Court, where he rented a room. He lived near Half Moon Lake, about a mile and a half southeast of the party site and may have been seen walking along Moon Road.Geib was last heard from during a series of cell phone calls between 12:47 a.m. and 12:57 a.m. on Sunday. At 12:47 a.m., he called the friend who had driven him to the party to say that he'd "had enough" and was walking home. He then called a friend at 12:51 a.m., but all he said was, "I'm in a field," before the phone call cut off. The friend called back and heard only what she thought was either breathing or the wind before the call ended. The phone was then used twice over the next few minutes in an attempt to call the friend back with the last attempt ending at 12:57 a.m. Geib's phone was not used again after that. Neither were his credit cards.
The area where Geib was last seen was thoroughly searched three times. During one of the searches, an estimated 1,500 volunteers as well as aircraft searched the area around the party site. Nothing was found.
Three weeks later, on July 2, 2005, Todd Geib's body was discovered in a remote pond near the party. It was reported, "according to the couple who found Todd, he was standing upright in Obenhall Lake. They remember it distinctly because his head and shoulders were sticking out of the water. With a blood alcohol content of .12, the cause of death was ruled “drowning.” The manner of death was ruled “undetermined.” The Michigan State Police closed Todd’s case." (Piehl, 6/12/09).
One police officer initially provided speculation to Geib's mother, Kathy, that her son had gone for a swim. But it didn't make sense. Geib was found fully clothed with his wallet in his pocket. (Piehl, 6/12/09).
Geib's family does not believe the official ruling. They believe Todd Geib died as the result of a homicide.
In 2009, Geib's autopsy report and recovery photos were reviewed by Dr. Michael Sikirica, a board certified Forensic Pathologist and CEO of Forensic Identification and Profiling Labratory. He showed the file to his team, other investigators and also shared the data at an international convention of Medical Examiners. All agreed with Dr. Sikirica’s conclusion--that Todd Geib who had been missing for three weeks, had been dead 2 – 5 days. (Piehl, 3/3/10).
Despite these new findings, the Michigan State Police refused to reopen Todd Geib's case.
In March 2010, Kathy Geib told WZZM13, "We can't bring him back with an investigation, but Todd deserves justice," said Kathy Geib. "It's almost like saying Todd's life is worth nothing when we have all this evidence and no one turn back to see what happened." (Brenzing, 3/18/10).
Kathy Geib is still fighting to get the case reopened. A small rally--Justice for Todd--was held June 10, 2012 in Ravenna, Mich. to help urge police to change their minds.
“There was no water in his lungs,” she elaborated in an interview with Heather Lynn Peters of MLive on June 6, 2012. “From what we have found from the professionals is that he had been placed in the water after he was dead. They are 100 percent in agreement that in this case there were clues missed.”
She hopes it will be enough for police to open a case.
Case Details
Name/age: Todd Geib, 22
Hometown: Ravenna, Mich.
Last seen: 6/15/05 Casnovia, Mich.
Recovered: 07/02/05 Obenhall Lake
Investigating Agency: Michigan State Police
Sources
Barwacz, Sarah. (June 11, 2012). Mother of Todd Geib hopes to convince police to investigate her son's death. WZZM13. Retrieved June 24, 2012 from http://www.wzzm13.com/news/article/214718/2/Mother-of-Todd-Geib-hopes-to-convince-police-to-investigate-her-sons-death.http://www.wzzm13.com/news/story.aspx?storyid=41028.
Brenzing, Bob. (March 18, 2010). Kathy Geib wants more answers from her son's Todd's death in 2005. WZZM13. Retrieved June 24, 2012 from http://www.wzzm13.com/news/article/119626/0/Kathy-Geib-wants-more-answers-from-her-sons-Todds-death-in-2005.
Fleszar, Chris. (June 15, 2005) Police Suspend Search, Family Continues to Look for Missing Man, WZZM13. Retrieved July 2, 2009 from
Malavolti, Jon. (June 14, 2005). Family, friends, searchers hunt for missing Casnovia man. Michigan Chronicle. Retrieved March 13, 2012 from http://ccadp.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=victims&action=print&thread=6744.
Peters, Heather Lynn. (June 6, 2012). Mother of Muskegon County's Todd Geib hosting rally urging police to reopen death investigation. MLive. Retrieved June 24, 2012 from http://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/index.ssf/2012/06/mother_of_muskegon_countys_tod.html
Piehl, Christy. (March 3, 2010.) Despite New Evidence Officials Refuse to Reopen Case. Retrieved June 24, 2012 from http://sfkillers.com/?p=1150
Piehl, Christy. (June 12, 2009). Date and Death Connect Two Families. Awareness=Answers. Retrieved July 2, 2009 from
Published 7/2/09. Updated 06/24/12.http://sfkillers.com/?p=843.
