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

[arielilane]

Campus area is pretty unsafe whether the university wants to admit to it or not. They won’t admit that of course because their dollars depend on it. If Brian met with foul play walking home from UTS I wouldn’t think his body would be removed from the scene and disposed of somewhere else off campus, but who knows? Realistically someone would put him in a dumpster. Sure the dumpsters were checked but it’s possible his body was missed. Brian’s story is sad no matter what… All of this is a matter of opinion.

 

[Martinie]

Campus area is pretty unsafe whether the university wants to admit to it or not. They won’t admit that of course because their dollars depend on it. If Brian met with foul play walking home from UTS I wouldn’t think his body would be removed from the scene and disposed of somewhere else off campus, but who knows? Realistically someone would put him in a dumpster. Sure the dumpsters were checked but it’s possible his body was missed. Brian’s story is sad no matter what… All of this is a matter of opinion.

Apparently all the dumpster rubbish was sent to Tennessee at that time?? That's what someone commented on a while ago. So it could be possible he was dumped and ended up there.

 

[itsrak]

There is footage of him at the bar, his phone pings, statements given by people interviewed (mainly private), Brian's phone records (mainly private), his lack of activity after having gone missing, no sightings of him anywhere, I could go on and on.

Evidence is a very broad term. What are you referring to by the word "evidence?" If you mean there is not concrete evidence that he is dead, then yeah I'd agree. That requires a body, blood, or some type of confession at least. But as is the case with almost everything, there is always evidence. Most of it is protected and in the hands of the police.

With 'concrete' evidence, I think you may be onto something. Which is better than being under it.

 

[Ozoner]

Wishful thinking or not, there’s zero evidence of anything. Which is why we are still discussing it , hashing it over, arguing about it, etc., etc. . . . to this day.

Snipped.

That there has been no credible sighting of Brian since April 1, 2006—nearly 17 years ago—is evidence that he is deceased.

However, there is no evidence regarding how he died or where his body lies moldering.

 

[dotr]

A little surprised but pleased to see this lengthy article in a UK paper.

Mystery of student who went into bar 17 years ago - and was never seen again

Medical student Brian Shaffer, from Ohio, US, went on a bar crawl with his roommate to celebrate the beginning of spring break but it was the last time he was ever seen

www.mirror.co.uk

Liam Buckler 4 Mar 2023




Medical student Brian Shaffer went for a drink with his roommate when he disappeared (
Image:
Facebook)
''A 27-year-old medical student went into a bar 17 years ago - but was never seen again.

Brian Shaffer, a pupil at the Ohio State University College of Medicine, decided to go on a bar crawl with his roommate to celebrate the beginning of spring break on March 31, 2006.


William “Clint” Florence and Brian headed out to the Ugly Tuna Saloona bar in Columbus’ University District at around 10pm.

They were relaxing by drinking shots and playing drinking games after a busy period studying.

The pair decided to leave the bar and made their way to Arena District and Short North.

William's friend, Meredith Reed, offered them a lift back to the Ugly Tuna where they would continue their night.''

''Friends and family of Brian were questioned and passed lie detector tests - except for William who refused to comply.

However, the two women seen talking to Brian, were not required to take a lie detector test''.



''The FBI mocked up a picture of Brian to show what he would look like now but tragically there has been no reported sightings.

Central Ohio Crime Stoppers has offered a $100,000 (£80,000) reward for information on his whereabouts as his family and friends pray for his return.

And despite many theories Brian was living in another part of the world and under a new identity, it has never been proven, according to police''.

 

[Ozoner]

A little surprised but pleased to see this lengthy article in a UK paper.

Mystery of student who went into bar 17 years ago - and was never seen again

Medical student Brian Shaffer, from Ohio, US, went on a bar crawl with his roommate to celebrate the beginning of spring break but it was the last time he was ever seen

www.mirror.co.uk

Liam Buckler 4 Mar 2023


''The FBI mocked up a picture of Brian to show what he would look like now but tragically there has been no reported sightings.

. . .

And despite many theories Brian was living in another part of the world and under a new identity, it has never been proven, according to police''.

For me, an accident and foul play (including an accident that was deliberately concealed) are both viable options.

Suicide seems unlikely only because most suicide victims are found. However, suicide is the 4th leading cause of death among 25–44-year-olds, so it's tough to write it off altogether.

I will not rule out the possibility that Brian is still in the building, somehow buried or entombed via misadventure. For the police to say that he isn't amounts to them claiming that they're too smart for there to be any scenario they haven't thought of—too smart not to have thought of every possible concealed cavity within a massive building that was being altered daily due to continuing construction—even though numerous people have disappeared in buildings and been found inside those building years later despite being missed during initial, supposedly thorough searches.

Foul play is a good possibility, too, and that broad label encompasses many different possibilities. Brian could have mouthed off to someone while walking home and gotten himself killed. He could have been mugged and killed while resisting. He could have gone to someone's house to use drugs and OD'd. He could have been hit by a car and then hidden. You name it.

The one scenario that can be ruled out, in my opinion, is Brian's having run off to start a new life. People have done that, but virtually all of the ones who do are running from the law, trying to escape a bad marriage, or trying to pull an insurance scam. The small percentage who don't fall into one of those categories usually have a severe mental disorder such as schizophrenia or dementia. For a 27-year-old single person with no outstanding warrants and no major mental illness to do that would be unheard of. The likelihood is on par with alien abduction, in my opinion.

 

[Tman2004]

For me, an accident and foul play (including an accident that was deliberately concealed) are both viable options.

Suicide seems unlikely only because most suicide victims are found. However, suicide is the 4th leading cause of death among 25–44-year-olds, so it's tough to write it off altogether.

I will not rule out the possibility that Brian is still in the building, somehow buried or entombed via misadventure. For the police to say that he isn't amounts to them claiming that they're too smart for there to be any scenario they haven't thought of—too smart not to have thought of every possible concealed cavity within a massive building that was being altered daily due to continuing construction—even though numerous people have disappeared in buildings and been found inside those building years later despite being missed during initial, supposedly thorough searches.

Foul play is a good possibility, too, and that broad label encompasses many different possibilities. Brian could have mouthed off to someone while walking home and gotten himself killed. He could have been mugged and killed while resisting. He could have gone to someone's house to use drugs and OD'd. He could have been hit by a car and then hidden. You name it.

The one scenario that can be ruled out, in my opinion, is Brian's having run off to start a new life. People have done that, but virtually all of the ones who do are running from the law, trying to escape a bad marriage, or trying to pull an insurance scam. The small percentage who don't fall into one of those categories usually have a severe mental disorder such as schizophrenia or dementia. For a 27-year-old single person with no outstanding warrants and no major mental illness to do that would be unheard of. The likelihood is on par with alien abduction, in my opinion.

As far as the mental illness angle we really don’t know what his mental health was like. His mom just died and from what I remember he was kinda rocky with the girlfriend even though they were supposed to go out of town. That’s plenty to drive someone to want to leave it all. You don’t want to be “crazy” or want to escape.

 

[Tman2004]

For me, an accident and foul play (including an accident that was deliberately concealed) are both viable options.

Suicide seems unlikely only because most suicide victims are found. However, suicide is the 4th leading cause of death among 25–44-year-olds, so it's tough to write it off altogether.

I will not rule out the possibility that Brian is still in the building, somehow buried or entombed via misadventure. For the police to say that he isn't amounts to them claiming that they're too smart for there to be any scenario they haven't thought of—too smart not to have thought of every possible concealed cavity within a massive building that was being altered daily due to continuing construction—even though numerous people have disappeared in buildings and been found inside those building years later despite being missed during initial, supposedly thorough searches.

Foul play is a good possibility, too, and that broad label encompasses many different possibilities. Brian could have mouthed off to someone while walking home and gotten himself killed. He could have been mugged and killed while resisting. He could have gone to someone's house to use drugs and OD'd. He could have been hit by a car and then hidden. You name it.

The one scenario that can be ruled out, in my opinion, is Brian's having run off to start a new life. People have done that, but virtually all of the ones who do are running from the law, trying to escape a bad marriage, or trying to pull an insurance scam. The small percentage who don't fall into one of those categories usually have a severe mental disorder such as schizophrenia or dementia. For a 27-year-old single person with no outstanding warrants and no major mental illness to do that would be unheard of. The likelihood is on par with alien abduction, in my opinion.

As far as the mental illness angle we really don’t know what his mental health was like. His mom just died and from what I remember he was kinda rocky with the girlfriend even though they were supposed to go out of town. That’s plenty to drive someone to want to leave it all. You don’t want to be “crazy” to want to escape.

 

[Ozoner]

As far as the mental illness angle we really don’t know what his mental health was like. His mom just died and from what I remember he was kinda rocky with the girlfriend even though they were supposed to go out of town. That’s plenty to drive someone to want to leave it all. You don’t want to be “crazy” to want to escape.

Brian didn't fit the profile of someone who needed to "escape" by disappearing. Again, people who do that have a compelling reason, like fleeing an arrest warrant, or SEVERE mental illness, like schizophrenia.

 

[dotr]

Fwiw.. rbbm.

‘Going missing wasn’t a conscious choice’ – why do some people just walk away from their lives?

More than 170,000 people go missing in Britain every year. What drives them to leave their friends and families – and what awaits them if they do come back?

www.theguardian.com

Francisco Garcia Mon 20 Mar 2023

''Sitting at her dining room table in Hampshire, 60-year-old Karen Bone tells the story of her son’s disappearance. ''

''Matt had been an academically gifted child. He had sailed through school, before completing a degree in environmental sciences at the University of East Anglia, where he swiftly moved on to his doctorate. His research was going well, taking him around Britain and beyond, even as far as Antarctica. “He seemed on top of things to begin with,” his mother explains. But there were faint warning signs too, “things you go back on retrospectively – though, at the time, you’d think, ‘Oh that’s just Matt.’”

''In 2016, her mother died after a decade of living with dementia. The two were exceptionally close. Caring for her mother, while juggling a demanding career and her own mental health, proved chaotic. “I was teaching subjects relating to dementia and mental capacity, so it all sort of morphed into one. I was living the theory and it was too much.” Blencowe lost her job in the same week her mother died; it felt like everything had been stripped away. Going missing, Blencowe says, wasn’t a conscious choice. On the first anniversary of her mother’s death, she put on her best suit and packed a bag with a few photographs and her mother’s cardigan, before ordering a taxi to the local station and boarding the next train to London. She checked into the hotel in Hyde Park where her parents had spent their honeymoon decades before.

There hadn’t been anything like a plan. The following days saw a deeply vulnerable Blencowe move across the city at random. At the time, she didn’t consider herself a “missing person”; she was too dejected to give this blur of experiences a name. But at home, her loved ones had waited in anguish, hoping for an answer

 

[megklank]

His case is just baffling to me, I will never understand how someone can be caught on CCTV footage going into a bar, and then never be seen leaving. To me, there are only two options that make sense. He went missing on purpose or he was murdered. I think the roommate knows more about what happened than he would admit. I really hope his family can get answers, it has been almost 20 years.

 

[arielilane]

Maybe one day we’ll know what happened to Brian Shaffer.

 

[dotr]

No joke, Brian is still missing.


A mock-up of what Brian Shaffer might look like now (
Image:
Ohio Bureau Of Criminal Investigation)

Medical student Brian Shaffer went for a drink with his roommate when he disappeared (
Image:
Facebook)

Mystery of student who went into bar 17 years ago - and was never seen again

Medical student Brian Shaffer, from Ohio, US, went on a bar crawl with his roommate to celebrate the beginning of spring break but it was the last time he was ever seen

www.mirror.co.uk

 

[Tman2004]

Maybe one day we’ll know what happened to Brian Shaffer.

If the police ever just release the files to the public it could be solved.

 

[Tower]

His case is just baffling to me, I will never understand how someone can be caught on CCTV footage going into a bar, and then never be seen leaving. To me, there are only two options that make sense. He went missing on purpose or he was murdered. I think the roommate knows more about what happened than he would admit. I really hope his family can get answers, it has been almost 20 years.

This sounds so blunt and awful, but I think he ended up in a dumpster or undiscovered in a body of water or outdoor area. Without finding him, I don’t have a strong opinion on foul play vs. misadventure. I do think there’s compelling proof of ways he could have exited without video surveillance. Again, this is graphic, but I think if he had remained in the building complex there would have been a decomposition odor. And running away is so romantic, but highly unlikely. Jmo

 

[NoBodyLeftBehind]

I have wondered about this case for YEARS.. and I know a lot of other people have too. It’s just mind boggling. I have frequented ugly tuna a LOT during my college years .. I loved that place. I’m sad that the whole area is different now.

When it comes to Brian running away from his life, I just can’t seem to believe that. He would have to be pure genius to not be seen on ANY cameras and not have any evidence of him being alive still. I mean I’d probably go on my vacation I had planned first... regardless of his gf wanting a proposal. I know there were a lot of factors that could point to him wanting to leave his life, but he did still have a brother whom he was closer with in the months before his disappearance.

A lot of me thinks that something happened in the construction site.. and someone covered it up bc of lawsuits. I wouldn’t put it past osu / the bar owners. Speaking of the bar owner... I looked into where he lived and it just so happens he lived near where Brian’s phone pinged when Alexis called months later.

Does anyone know what kind of searches were done in the construction site? I know it has been remodeled since then as well. Also I read there was a kitchen exit for workers.. and I’ve read a construction exit, are they the same one?

About the bar owner living near the phone ping is very interesting. I am from a small town and bar owners 9/10 are at the bar while its opened or will be for a period of time. Do we know any further information on this? Also was it a younger or older owner? Thanks!

 

[NoBodyLeftBehind]

If the police ever just release the files to the public it could be solved.

YEs, or if we could see all the footage to see if anone looks sus....there is something out there. We have to keep talking.

 

[NoBodyLeftBehind]

This sounds so blunt and awful, but I think he ended up in a dumpster or undiscovered in a body of water or outdoor area. Without finding him, I don’t have a strong opinion on foul play vs. misadventure. I do think there’s compelling proof of ways he could have exited without video surveillance. Again, this is graphic, but I think if he had remained in the building complex there would have been a decomposition odor. And running away is so romantic, but highly unlikely. Jmo

I deff think he did not go back into the UTS after going from view of the camera with B and A. I want to see the footage of the girls leaving and see where/ if they look back at all, and it what direction. I think he went towards the stairs/service elevator.

 

[NoBodyLeftBehind]

The frustrating thing about the construction area is that after all this time, none of us are truly clear on what state it was in. We've been laser-focused on a few soundbites that we've plucked from podcast interviews, at the top of the list being Sgt John Hurst's description "Completely dug up". We don't know what he meant.
It's fair enough that the construction site is a point of interest. When someone goes missing there's always the question of whether there were any hazardous areas around them at the time. We're usually talking about bodies of water, crevices, and sometimes even old mineshafts or quicksand. Construction sites are just as hazardous and they belong on that list.
I would hope that if they searched that building within an inch of its life while there were grave concerns about a man who was missing without a trace, they would at least take some photographs while they were in there. And if there's such photographic evidence in the Brian Shaffer file, surely there is no good reason under the sun not to release it now.

YEs, know one has made it clear what the construction was like. Some podcasts make it sound like know one could have walked through it and made it out alive, and some make it seem more like it was just empty and being built in not built up and that it could have easily been maneuvered. Does anyone know anyone who knows anyone who was working on the construction site??

 

[Ozoner]

YEs, know one has made it clear what the construction was like. Some podcasts make it sound like know one could have walked through it and made it out alive, and some make it seem more like it was just empty and being built in not built up and that it could have easily been maneuvered. Does anyone know anyone who knows anyone who was working on the construction site??

I don't know anyone who worked on the site.

However, some things are clear from detailed information that was linked much earlier in one of the threads.

It was not an existing structure that was being renovated. That part of the building was new construction adjoining an existing structure.

No photos or detailed descriptions of state of the construction site as it was on the date that Brian disappeared have ever been shared. It was described as "completely dug up" by the lead investigator. I think we can assume that the cement for the floor had not yet been poured. It sounds like the outer walls must have already been in place.

The construction site was probably changing daily, which may be why it's difficult to pin down exactly how it looked on the date of Brian's disappearance.