CA CA - Thomas Michael Thurston, 19, Ukiah, Dec 2005

SheWhoMustNotBeNamed

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Thomas Michael Thurston

Lost/Injured Missing

Missing From: Ukiah, California

Missing Since: November 6, 2005

Age: 19 -- Height: 6'0"-6'1' -- Weight: 160-170 lbs -- Hair Color: Brown -- Eye Color: Blue

Thomas' nickname is Tom.


Thomas and a friend left their hometown of Ukiah, California on November 5, 2005 for an overnight camping trip on the north Cow Mountain, at the Mayacamas campground. Thomas got up and left the campsite at 2:00 am on November 6 and never returned. His friends spent several hours searching for him and then notified authorities. An extensive search turned up no sign of him.


California Department of Justice

Charley Project
 
Thomas "Tom" Michael Thurston

Mendocino County Sheriff's Office Case # 05-3805

NamUS MP # 10390

Date of birth: 14 July 1986

Tom is a white male, 6 feet 1 inch tall, weighing 170 pounds, and has blue eyes and buzzcut brown hair. He was wearing a plaid shirt and blue jeans when last seen. On 6 November 2005, Tom went camping with a friend. They encamped at the Cow Mountain Mayacama Campground, on the Mendocino/Lake County border. Google map link here: https://www.google.com/maps/place/S...c4e4edae73da65!8m2!3d39.061291!4d-123.0563915

At about 2 AM on the 7th, Tom awoke, borrowed a flashlight from his friend, and went outside to make a restroom call. He never returned.The sleepy friend did not miss Tom until daylight. The friend then searched for Tom for several hours on that Sunday morning before calling the Thurston family. Responding deputies searched the recreation area that afternoon. Augmented by search and rescue volunteers, they again searched on Monday, with no result.

Tom's fingerprints and DNA results are available. The case is assigned to Det. Quincy Cromer of the MCSO. (Who, it so happens, is also a reporter for the Ukiah Daily Journal.) Information concerning this missing persons case may be called in to the MCSO Tipline at 707-234-2100. MCSO's Investigative Services Bureau may be emailed at barneys@co.mendocino.ca.us. The Sheriff's Office can also be reached at 951 Low Gap Road, Ukiah, CA 95482.

Sources:

MCSO website page: http://www.mendocinosheriff.com/missing/

CA Dept of Justice website page: http://dojapp.doj.ca.gov/missing/detail.asp?FCN=3310531100231

NamUS website page: https://www.findthemissing.org/en/cases/10390/1/

National Missing Person Directory website page: http://www.missingin.org/reg5528/thomas_michael_thurston.htm

The Willits News, 7 October 2015: http://www.willitsnews.com/general-...oking-for-missing-persons-in-mendocino-county
 
I believe the dates in this case went wonky because of Tom's disappearance during the wee hours. I have made reference to a 2005 calendar in an attempt to be accurate.Despite his youth, Tom was a married father with two infants. The couple had been involved for four years. He was the househusband while his wife worked. The two of them went shooting, hiking and camping together on nearby Cow Mountain as often as three times a week. Tom was quite familiar with the Cow Mountain terrain.A 12-year friend of Tom's called and asked if he wanted to go camping. It was agreed he needed the time off. He left at 9 PM Saturday 5 November 2005, with a promise to be back home in the morning to accompany his wife to breakfast at Denny's Restaurant. Thus it was 2 AM on Sunday 6 November when he borrowed the flashlight and went to the restroom. After his buddy searched for Tom, he left a can of soda and a bag of crackers at the campsite in case Tom showed up.After the friend sounded the alarm, 36 searchers combed Cow Mountain and nearby Red Mountain. A hard and misting rain that cut visibility to 35 yards and washed out spoor hampered the search effort. One oddity was the absence of cigarette butts at Tom's campsite; he was a chainsmoker, and ordinarily careless with the remains.Tom's buddy took and passed a polygraph test. The searchers' find of the soda at the campsite verified that the the campsite had indeed been used.After Tom vanished, his wife spent entire days in a personal search on Cow Mountain. She discovered that one ranch on adjacent Red Mountain had security cameras that might have picked up Tom. The Mendocino County Sheriff's Office promised to view the footage "as a last resort".In a bizarre coda, Tom's wife had her Jeep stolen and promptly recovered on 17 December.Sources:Ukiah Daily Journal, 8 November 2005, bylined Quincy Cromer: https://www.newspapers.com/image/1349995UDJ, 10 November 2005: https://www.newspapers.com/image/1350257UDJ, 12 November 2005: https://www.newspapers.com/image/1350598; https://www.newspapers.com/image/1350728UDJ, 9 December 2005: https://www.newspapers.com/image/1345862; https://www.newspapers.com/image/13495955UDJ, 18 December 2005: https://www.newspapers.com/image/1347076; https://www.newspapers.com/image/1347182
 
Not having a name to direct my query to, I still mailed a request for Tom's Missing Persons Report to the MCSO. My reply came today--a rather starchy refusal from the County Counsel, no less. She cites law to justify her refusal to supply any information whatsoever. This is the first LE agency I have ever had "lawyer up" on me when I requested help.
 
Thomas Michael Thurston was last seen on Nov. 6, 2005. He was born in 1986 and described as 6-foot-1, 170 pounds with brown hair and blue eyes. Anyone with information about Thurston’s location is asked to contact the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office and reference case number 053805.

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Missing person cases in Mendocino and Lake counties
 
TomThurston-featured.png


Thomas Thurston, 19, of Ukiah and a friend left Ukiah Saturday morning November 5, 2005 at 9:00 am to go on an overnight camping trip to the north Cow Mountain, Mayacamas campground, east of Ukiah. Thurston got up around 2:00 am Sunday morning and has not been seen or heard from since. The friend attempted to locate Thurston for several hours Sunday morning and then contacted Thurston’s family to advise them he was missing.
Mendocino County Sheriff’s Deputies searched the area Sunday afternoon but did not locate Thurston. Deputies resumed the search Monday morning along with Mendocino County Sheriff’s search and rescue volunteers. Anyone with information on Thurston’s whereabouts is asked to contact the Mendocino CountySheriff’s office at (707) 463-4086.
Age at time of disappearance: 19
DOB: July 14, 1986
Height: 6′ 0″
Weight: 160
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Blue
Date of last contact: November 6, 2005
 

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