Found Deceased CA - Zacharey Wilks, 27, Lompoc, 24 May 2017

[Psychic Sleuth]

I really think he most likely went off the road somewhere and is not visible. No phone use, no bank account use and the car has not been spotted anywhere. Even thought the 166 is basically flat and desert like close to New Cuyama it is quite windy with cliffs and lots of brush leaving Santa Maria. I know they say his cell phone pinged near New Cuyama and I'm not sure exactly how those things work, but isn't it possible that it could have caught that tower and pinged before New Cuyama? That's my thoughts anyways. It's just been too long with no word and sadly this is what I think happened. He was reportedly very excited to go spend time with his relatives and had even told his hair stylist I believe it was the day he left. It seems unlikely that he just disappeared by choice. Of course, there is always the possibility of foul play but again that seems unlikely to me. Hwy 166 is a pretty dangerous road to drive on and especially late night. And I don't know how it was out there that night, but we had been having really dense fog around that time and that could be a factor. I sure hope he's found soon.

 

[LisaWL7TR]

I really think he most likely went off the road somewhere and is not visible. No phone use, no bank account use and the car has not been spotted anywhere. Even thought the 166 is basically flat and desert like close to New Cuyama it is quite windy with cliffs and lots of brush leaving Santa Maria. I know they say his cell phone pinged near New Cuyama and I'm not sure exactly how those things work, but isn't it possible that it could have caught that tower and pinged before New Cuyama? That's my thoughts anyways. It's just been too long with no word and sadly this is what I think happened. He was reportedly very excited to go spend time with his relatives and had even told his hair stylist I believe it was the day he left. It seems unlikely that he just disappeared by choice. Of course, there is always the possibility of foul play but again that seems unlikely to me. Hwy 166 is a pretty dangerous road to drive on and especially late night. And I don't know how it was out there that night, but we had been having really dense fog around that time and that could be a factor. I sure hope he's found soon.

I do agree single car accident is most likely. : (
Also in the op his brotber mentioned he seemed tired. Perhaps he ended up on another road/route as he continued to drive tired?

 

[Psychic Sleuth]

My understanding is cell phone pings are not always that accurate. Was there triangulation to determine where he was when his phone received the last ping or was it a ping off a single tower? Which tower or towers? There are many places a car could be off the roadway on the 166 and not seen (before and after New Cuyama/Cuyama).. Since his phone was dead as of about 12:30am I don't think he made it far. I also believe the lithium batteries in new cell phones usually take a while to quit working (30 minutes or so) when a phone is damaged. If he left at 11pm and had an accident around midnight he would not have been to New Cuyama yet. That takes about 1.5 hours and we aren't even sure what time exactly that he left. I would guess that if he got in an accident around midnight that he would have been closer to the Rockfront Ranch area where another accident victim was just found some 200+ feet off the road and hidden from view.

 

[cybervampira]

'No one just disappears.' 1 year later, still no sign of missing Lompoc man

Lompoc police are in charge of the investigation into the now 28-year-old's disappearance. They say there have been no new leads since the original missing person's report was filed last year despite tireless efforts by not only authorities, but also friends and family.

"They've checked the area, they've checked the unincorporated roads in any possible way a vehicle could have driven and they've not been able to find any evidence of a vehicle off the road, vehicle parked, anything like that," Sgt. Kevin Martin with the Lompoc Police Department told KSBY News last week.

Martin says there have been four separate occasions where citizens have reported possibly seeing Wilks' vehicle, a 90's black Honda Civic with a California license plate number of 7SGR202. He says the detective still assigned to the active case has followed up on every single tip, but so far, they have not come any closer to finding the missing man.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Lompoc Police Department at (805) 736-2341.

 

[10ofRods]

There was a guy who was eventually found off the road (I think it was near Castaic Lake). Was in brush/covered for a couple of years.

 

[10ofRods]

DBM. Duplicate.

 

[JerseyGirl]

The discovery of wreckage from an old car crash in Kern County may help solve the mystery behind a missing Lompoc man's disappearance more than two years ago.

On Monday, the Lompoc Police Department announced on its app that detectives learned Friday about the discovery of old wreckage involving a vehicle that matched the description of the one belonging to a Lompoc man who disappeared in May 2017.

They stopped short of saying the discovery was related to Wilks' disappearance, but he is the only known person from Lompoc who went missing during that time frame.

Missing Lompoc Man’s Crashed Vehicle Found Off Highway 166 in Kern County

 

[inmyhumbleopinion]

Posted: 9:05 PM, Oct 28, 2019
Updated: 2:42 PM, Oct 29, 2019
“UPDATE: The California Highway Patrol tells KSBY News there were no remains inside the vehicle when it was found by a citizen last week.

Inspectors will be taking a look at the vehicle to see if anything was mechanically wrong with it, causing it to crash.

CHP says it appears the vehicle has been in the area since around the time Zachery Wilks went missing and it appears to be a solo vehicle crash.

Search and rescue crews will possibly be searching the area off State Route 33 east of Soda Lake Road this weekend.

---

ORIGINAL STORY: Lompoc Police have found the vehicle of a missing Lompoc man who went missing in May of 2017.

[SBM]”
Vehicle of missing Lompoc man found after 2+ years

I hope Zachery is found very soon. He likely was either ejected from the vehicle or went to get help and got lost, IMO.

Lots of posts on the Find Zacharey Wilks Facebook page over the last 24 hours:
Find Zacharey Wilks

 

[MagnoliaMountain]

Subscribing. Hoping that Zacharey's loved ones will have more answers soon.

 

[VelvetVixen]

Sad news has just been posted on Find Zacharey Wilks fb page by his Mum. Not sure if I’m allowed to post it here.

 

[rodneymullenmg]

It looks like on the Find Zach FB they said LE confirmed he died at the scene. Just not how

 

[Darling136]

Missing Lompoc man's remains found almost three years later in Maricopa

Found deceased

 

[StarEyes]

Marissa did an episode of The Vanished podcast that was an “update” on April 5, 2021. It revisits the case, and interviews with his Mom. Here’s the link:
EPISODE 277: Case Update- Zacharey Wilks — The Vanished Podcast