OH OH - Brian Shaffer, 27, Columbus, 1 Apr 2006 #5

[Zimmerman The Gnome]

What happened to the posts about the guy in the picture? Was it not allowed on here?

 

[dotr]

Mar 29, 2021
https://www.news5cleveland.com/news...-who-went-missing-from-a-bar-near-osu-in-2006

The Ohio Attorney General's Office.
Pictured above Brian Shaffer.
“Take a close look at this image: a single tip can reignite a cold case and bring a family closer to reunification with a loved one,” Attorney General Dave Yost said. “Hope doesn’t have an expiration date – every missing person counts.”

Photo by: The Ohio Attorney General's Office.
BCI's forensic criminal artist constructed an age-progressed image of what Brian may look like now. Investigators hope the new image may prompt the public to submit tips to law enforcement.''

 

[Stella]

I was so firm in my belief that Brian never left the building alive for so long but after listening to the interview with Det. Hurst, I think he's still alive and made his getaway with help from Clint. What struck me as odd was that 2 years after he disappeared, the Shaffer family fired the detective they had hired AND Alexis Waggoner got married to someone else. I nearly blew a gasket when I found out just 1 lone detective looked at the security footage...screening it on the wall of his basement. And Hurst did say that if they did find Brian and he wanted to be left alone, they couldn't tell anyone. His brother refuses to discuss it any further. I just feel like everyone connected to the case knows not where Brian is necessarily, only that he IS.

 

[Zimmerman The Gnome]

Disagree Clint is involved, don't believe he knows anything. Do agree Hurst believes he is alive.

 

[Ozoner]

I was so firm in my belief that Brian never left the building alive for so long but after listening to the interview with Det. Hurst, I think he's still alive and made his getaway with help from Clint. What struck me as odd was that 2 years after he disappeared, the Shaffer family fired the detective they had hired AND Alexis Waggoner got married to someone else. I nearly blew a gasket when I found out just 1 lone detective looked at the security footage...screening it on the wall of his basement. And Hurst did say that if they did find Brian and he wanted to be left alone, they couldn't tell anyone. His brother refuses to discuss it any further. I just feel like everyone connected to the case knows not where Brian is necessarily, only that he IS.

Clint was not that close to Brian. The only skin Clint has in the game is that he has had to take a lot of heat due to the fact—coincidental, in my opinion—that he spent the evening with Brian on the night that Brian disappeared. I used to think that Clint could be involved, but I now find it extremely unlikely.

I'm not sure whether Brian made it out of the complex, but I consider it more likely than not that he's still there. If he made it out, then I think that he died that morning or the next day.

 

[Stella]

Guys, I'd really like to take that building apart with my bare hands, you know?

 

[george14]

And Hurst did say that if they did find Brian and he wanted to be left alone, they couldn't tell anyone. His brother refuses to discuss it any further. I just feel like everyone connected to the case knows not where Brian is necessarily, only that he IS.

They would close the case if they knew he was alive.

 

[OldBackstop]

This one doesn't seem too mysterious to me. Brian had told Alexis the week before "move on without me," though he didn't go on to break up. His father had said he looked exhausted from days of all nights studying. Yet it's is 2 am and he is collecting digits trom that girl and telling friends to meet him back at his place later. In college these are known as "study aids," and a med student might very well be able to get hooked up through work.

It seems very obvious to me that he was looking for some help partying on, whether adderall or speed or cocaine. May e he was looking for a sizable score for his upcoming trip. His buddy Clint, who there were drug rumors about, lawyers up and refuses a polygraph twice. It seems to me all the stories tip toe around the drug connection, probably to protect his family.

Brian announced he was going to talk to the band....a classic place for a drug connection, no?. Either they drove him off to a drug hookup or sent him into the local high crime area looking for Huggy Bear to tighten him up. Maybe Brian was going to share some drugs with the band, a common "tip" for pointing someone to a drug connection.

As far as I can see, the band merely said they "don't remember him" but none of them took a polygraph.

As far as the cameras....there were dead spots, he could have been screened behind a group, he could have gone out the service door "not sure if that is debunked.)

Anyway, here is the point. He DID leave the bar. <shrug> It is of minor passing interest why the cameras didn't see him...in mystery crime cases there are always some "facts" that don't wash out in the eventual solution.

I think he got jacked trying to drunkenly score from the local dangerous area, got stuffed in a trunk and dumped out in the country. Or perhaps he went out into that drug purchase and overdosed, leading to the dealers to need to dump the body out in the country or a body of water.

Polygraph are dubious....refusing a polygraph is pretty powerful.

As to the issue of suicide or a planned flight to a new life -- without a wallet, ID, phone, cash, clothes, etc.

Here is my main point, and I'll be obnoxious and put it in caps:

DOES SOMEONE WHO IS GOING TO COMMIT SUICIDE OR FLEE THE CITY COLLECT DIGITS FROM A COLLEGE GIRL?

 

[Falkner77]

This one doesn't seem too mysterious to me. Brian had told Alexis the week before "move on without me," though he didn't go on to break up. His father had said he looked exhausted from days of all nights studying. Yet it's is 2 am and he is collecting digits trom that girl and telling friends to meet him back at his place later. In college these are known as "study aids," and a med student might very well be able to get hooked up through work.

It seems very obvious to me that he was looking for some help partying on, whether adderall or speed or cocaine. May e he was looking for a sizable score for his upcoming trip. His buddy Clint, who there were drug rumors about, lawyers up and refuses a polygraph twice. It seems to me all the stories tip toe around the drug connection, probably to protect his family.

Brian announced he was going to talk to the band....a classic place for a drug connection, no?. Either they drove him off to a drug hookup or sent him into the local high crime area looking for Huggy Bear to tighten him up. Maybe Brian was going to share some drugs with the band, a common "tip" for pointing someone to a drug connection.

As far as I can see, the band merely said they "don't remember him" but none of them took a polygraph.

As far as the cameras....there were dead spots, he could have been screened behind a group, he could have gone out the service door "not sure if that is debunked.)

Anyway, here is the point. He DID leave the bar. <shrug> It is of minor passing interest why the cameras didn't see him...in mystery crime cases there are always some "facts" that don't wash out in the eventual solution.

I think he got jacked trying to drunkenly score from the local dangerous area, got stuffed in a trunk and dumped out in the country. Or perhaps he went out into that drug purchase and overdosed, leading to the dealers to need to dump the body out in the country or a body of water.

Polygraph are dubious....refusing a polygraph is pretty powerful.

As to the issue of suicide or a planned flight to a new life -- without a wallet, ID, phone, cash, clothes, etc.

Here is my main point, and I'll be obnoxious and put it in caps:

DOES SOMEONE WHO IS GOING TO COMMIT SUICIDE OR FLEE THE CITY COLLECT DIGITS FROM A COLLEGE GIRL?

 

[PoppyJune]

This one doesn't seem too mysterious to me. Brian had told Alexis the week before "move on without me," though he didn't go on to break up. His father had said he looked exhausted from days of all nights studying. Yet it's is 2 am and he is collecting digits trom that girl and telling friends to meet him back at his place later. In college these are known as "study aids," and a med student might very well be able to get hooked up through work.

It seems very obvious to me that he was looking for some help partying on, whether adderall or speed or cocaine. May e he was looking for a sizable score for his upcoming trip. His buddy Clint, who there were drug rumors about, lawyers up and refuses a polygraph twice. It seems to me all the stories tip toe around the drug connection, probably to protect his family.

Brian announced he was going to talk to the band....a classic place for a drug connection, no?. Either they drove him off to a drug hookup or sent him into the local high crime area looking for Huggy Bear to tighten him up. Maybe Brian was going to share some drugs with the band, a common "tip" for pointing someone to a drug connection.

As far as I can see, the band merely said they "don't remember him" but none of them took a polygraph.

As far as the cameras....there were dead spots, he could have been screened behind a group, he could have gone out the service door "not sure if that is debunked.)

Anyway, here is the point. He DID leave the bar. <shrug> It is of minor passing interest why the cameras didn't see him...in mystery crime cases there are always some "facts" that don't wash out in the eventual solution.

I think he got jacked trying to drunkenly score from the local dangerous area, got stuffed in a trunk and dumped out in the country. Or perhaps he went out into that drug purchase and overdosed, leading to the dealers to need to dump the body out in the country or a body of water.

Polygraph are dubious....refusing a polygraph is pretty powerful.

As to the issue of suicide or a planned flight to a new life -- without a wallet, ID, phone, cash, clothes, etc.

Here is my main point, and I'll be obnoxious and put it in caps:

DOES SOMEONE WHO IS GOING TO COMMIT SUICIDE OR FLEE THE CITY COLLECT DIGITS FROM A COLLEGE GIRL?

Agree with all of this. IMO, he is not alive, he did not skip town. He was either killed or died by some actions of his own.

 

[OldBackstop]

One other point. From what I saw, Brian was is shirtsleeves, not a coat or hat. He probably dressed for the high of 59 on April 1, 2006 in Columbus, or if he had warmer gear perhaps it was left in Florence's car. The low that night had dropped to the high 30s with precipitation sometime that night of .20 inches of rain. If he had any friend in that bar, perhaps knowing he had the walk home moved them to lend him a hat or coat or both, which might have caused the guys checking the cameras to miss him.

 

[OldBackstop]

I would think the way this case would get broken, like so many others, is that some drug dealer would get arrested or some convict would do the "Can we make a deal, I know something about this old case, Huggy Bear whacked some yuppie that was trying to buy coke and dumped his body outside town..."

Hasn't happened yet, but maybe some day....

 

[itsrak]

DOES SOMEONE WHO IS GOING TO COMMIT SUICIDE OR FLEE THE CITY COLLECT DIGITS FROM A COLLEGE GIRL?

No, but someone moments from dying in an accident might. Simplest theory. No killer. No evil Clint. No drug deals. No inexplicable suicide. No even exiting the complex. No concocting a story as to why not caught on cam departing, not caught on cam outside. No witnesses keeping silent. No blowing off the afterparty. No blowing off the GF and vacay mum had funded. Just a dumb drunken accident alone in the completely dug up construction area within just feet and just moments of having chatted up the co-eds. Find the remains, close the case.

 

[Old Mozez]

Find the remains, close the case.

Lol…After your Amen post, they can almost close this thread.

 

[Evilxelvis138]

No, but someone moments from dying in an accident might. Simplest theory. No killer. No evil Clint. No drug deals. No inexplicable suicide. No even exiting the complex. No concocting a story as to why not caught on cam departing, not caught on cam outside. No witnesses keeping silent. No blowing off the afterparty. No blowing off the GF and vacay mum had funded. Just a dumb drunken accident alone in the completely dug up construction area within just feet and just moments of having chatted up the co-eds. Find the remains, close the case.

Someone hitting their head, falling, getting trapped in an area that is to be covered with concrete, and then all the workers there not seeing a body seems so far fetched to me. Unless he fell down into some really really deep hole and for whatever reason that hole was completely filled up is the only plausible way I could see this happening.

It would have to be a tight enough/deep enough hole for them to not see a body yet big enough for him to have fallen in to.

Don’t people who die this way usually die that way for a reason, like Jimmy Hoffa? Not from an accident.

 

[itsrak]

Someone hitting their head, falling, getting trapped in an area that is to be covered with concrete, and then all the workers there not seeing a body seems so far fetched to me. ...

Brian's dad Randy didn't think it seemed too far-fetched - he actually went in and searched the construction area himself after Hurst did! They had the right idea, they just didn't find Brian's body. Could Brian's remains be somewhere, anywhere, outside the complex? Of course. But inside the complex seems most likely to me. It is at this point the single place on the planet worth searching...

 

[Evilxelvis138]

I wonder if the technology used to see what exists underneath dirt could be used here but for the concrete. Would dogs be able to pick up anything? I haven’t heard of this possibility ever happening before, and even though I find it far fetched who am I to look away from any single possibility to help bring Brian home.

 

[XPh]

Someone hitting their head, falling, getting trapped in an area that is to be covered with concrete, and then all the workers there not seeing a body seems so far fetched to me. Unless he fell down into some really really deep hole and for whatever reason that hole was completely filled up is the only plausible way I could see this happening.

It would have to be a tight enough/deep enough hole for them to not see a body yet big enough for him to have fallen in to.

Don’t people who die this way usually die that way for a reason, like Jimmy Hoffa? Not from an accident.

It seems like whenever the accident theory is debated, it always goes back to how implausible it is that he would be buried in concrete, as if that’s the only possible accident scenario.

There are plenty of other ways for concealed accidents to occur. The Gateway complex is a large building. It houses a movie theater and a number of other shops/offices. The Ugly Tuna itself was tiny, but the building is not. Aside from the construction site, there’s a large roof, duct work, and who knows what other areas that a drunk person could wander into and become trapped/hidden.

We have seen stories of people becoming trapped in duct work, behind refrigerators, between walls, in chimneys, etc. and not found for months/years. It can happen. Obviously it would need to be somewhere that conceals not only the sight, but also the smell of a corpse. But we have seen that can happen.

IF it was an accident, and we knew how it happened, then we would have found him by now.

I think any discussion of the accident theory needs to think outside the box. The construction area warrants consideration, but let’s not make it seem like that’s the only option for a concealed accident.

 

[itsrak]

It seems like whenever the accident theory is debated, it always goes back to how implausible it is that he would be buried in concrete, as if that’s the only possible accident scenario.

There are plenty of other ways for concealed accidents to occur. The Gateway complex is a large building. It houses a movie theater and a number of other shops/offices. The Ugly Tuna itself was tiny, but the building is not. Aside from the construction site, there’s a large roof, duct work, and who knows what other areas that a drunk person could wander into and become trapped/hidden.

We have seen stories of people becoming trapped in duct work, behind refrigerators, between walls, in chimneys, etc. and not found for months/years. It can happen. Obviously it would need to be somewhere that conceals not only the sight, but also the smell of a corpse. But we have seen that can happen.

IF it was an accident, and we knew how it happened, then we would have found him by now.

I think any discussion of the accident theory needs to think outside the box. The construction area warrants consideration, but let’s not make it seem like that’s the only option for a concealed accident.

Agreed. In the accident inside the complex scenario, the construction area, completely dug up as it was when Brian disappeared, and easily conceivably accessed according to Hurst, seems most likely to me. But elsewhere in the complex is certainly possible. As anyone familiar with the complex knows, the structure lies at a street intersection that is not 'square' and the structure itself - which follows the contours of the intersection, is likewise not 'square'. Thus, it is conceivable there could be some wedges/traps. And the stench reported in the building in the wake of the disappearance was reported in the area of the theatre, the escalator, the elevator, so remains in this scenario could be in that area...

 

[george14]

Agreed. In the accident inside the complex scenario, the construction area, completely dug up as it was when Brian disappeared, and easily conceivably accessed according to Hurst, seems most likely to me. But elsewhere in the complex is certainly possible. As anyone familiar with the complex knows, the structure lies at a street intersection that is not 'square' and the structure itself - which follows the contours of the intersection, is likewise not 'square'. Thus, it is conceivable there could be some wedges/traps. And the stench reported in the building in the wake of the disappearance was reported in the area of the theatre, the escalator, the elevator, so remains in this scenario could be in that area...

Hasn’t it been reported by several people that there was a different exit that people routinely left to go smoke and also leave the bar? And also wasn’t the “never seen leaving on camera” thing determined by only one detective?

I used to think he was somewhere in the complex, but after all these years I doubt it. There is always a chance, but to me it’s a complete red herring. Dogs also traced his scent outside too; but that could also be unreliable.

I don’t think any single theory is rock-solid. They all deserve consideration. But I think there is an extremely low chance Brian is buried/stuck somewhere in the complex. I think he is probably buried in some field or was disposed of in a body of water/dump. Someone knows, and I believe those people killed Brian in an altercation after the bar while he was partying elsewhere.

My other theory is he was killed somewhere in the bar and then disposed of. Didn’t have to be a bloody event or out in public; it could have been discrete.