On April 1, 2006, 27-year-old medical student Brian Randall Shaffer disappeared from a bar in Columbus, Ohio. With no solid theories about what happened to Shaffer, Columbus This, however, is purely speculative and has yet to be backed up by any hard evidence that Shaffer was considering taking his own life. Shaffer and his father Randy celebrated the occasion by going out for a steak dinner together earlier that evening. Like at least 15 times every single Saturday night. Suicide>>>>>murdered by bar employees. I can't come to a conclusion either. Shaffer was a 27 year old boy who studied medicine at Ohio State University, in his final year at the time of his disappearance. As is often the case with missing persons, and especially celebrities who died under mysterious circumstances, there had been multiple alleged sightings of Brian Shaffer in the years since he vanished. Again, this is highly unlikely. Investigating Agency Columbus Police Department 877-645-8477 Source Information If it were a serial killer, then we would have heard of other killings in the area, too (I also dont buy the Smiley Face killer thing either). Also, police and family members have watched the footage over and over again, and they are "100% sure" that he did not go back down the escalator that night. He and Derek, Brian's younger brother, along with some other citizens who had become interested in the case, bought waders and spent much of their free time along the shores of the Olentangy River, which flows through Columbus adjacent to the OSU campus, searching in vain for the body near bridges. To summarize: I think Brian never left that bar alive. [6], It was possible, investigators realized, that Shaffer could have changed his clothes in the bar or put on a hat and kept his head down, hiding his face from the camera. Another option is that he left through some "employee exit" but from what I have gathered, there was no "employee exit". Replies analysing and speculating over the mystery and possible explanations are encouraged. In the case of Brian Shaffer, it's the ominous beginning of his bizarre disappearance. He would have been spotted trying to use an unauthorised exit right in front of the cops' eyes, and they would have stopped him. The detective sent the image to the FBI for facial recognition analysis, which ruled him out as the identity of the man. Nearly 15 years after an Ohio State University medical student disappeared from a campus-area bar, investigators are releasing a new photo they hope will lead to answers. With this case - and a handful of others, especially those involving disappearances under unusual circumstances - folks seem to form their opinions, and then are ready to die on that hill. It was only then that Brian Shaffer was declared missing. The camera did not record him leaving shortly afterwards when the Ugly Tuna Saloona closed; this was the last known time that Shaffer was seen. At Shaffer's apartment on King Avenue, six blocks from the bar, his car was still parked outside. More than two-and-a-half years after Ohio State medical student Brian Shaffer vanished from Ugly Tuna Saloona, a new clue has reinvigorated the investigation. Then I read another. However, a security camera near the entrance to a Columbus bar recorded him briefly talking to two women just before 2a.m., April 1, and then apparently re-entering the bar without any evidence of him leaving the area. Giulia Montanari joins in Police say they have three theories about the case but declined to discuss them even generally with the magazine. The last place he was seen was a joint called the Ugly Tuna Saloona. ._3bX7W3J0lU78fp7cayvNxx{max-width:208px;text-align:center} He was scheduled to vacation in Miami with Meredith, whom he was reportedly planning to marry. I think they're doing it because the human mind will come up with a bad theory in the place of no theory. It is possible that he left normally and the CCTV simply did not pick him up, but this is extremely unlikely. Authorities do not believe Shaffer left of his own accord, but it is unclear what caused his disappearance. What might cut against that? ._1QwShihKKlyRXyQSlqYaWW{height:16px;width:16px;vertical-align:bottom}._2X6EB3ZhEeXCh1eIVA64XM{margin-left:3px}._1jNPl3YUk6zbpLWdjaJT1r{font-size:12px;font-weight:500;line-height:16px;border-radius:2px;display:inline-block;margin-right:5px;overflow:hidden;text-overflow:ellipsis;vertical-align:text-bottom;white-space:pre;word-break:normal;padding:0 4px}._1jNPl3YUk6zbpLWdjaJT1r._39BEcWjOlYi1QGcJil6-yl{padding:0}._2hSecp_zkPm_s5ddV2htoj{font-size:12px;font-weight:500;line-height:16px;border-radius:2px;display:inline-block;margin-right:5px;overflow:hidden;text-overflow:ellipsis;vertical-align:text-bottom;white-space:pre;word-break:normal;margin-left:0;padding:0 4px}._2hSecp_zkPm_s5ddV2htoj._39BEcWjOlYi1QGcJil6-yl{padding:0}._1wzhGvvafQFOWAyA157okr{font-size:12px;font-weight:500;line-height:16px;border-radius:2px;margin-right:5px;overflow:hidden;text-overflow:ellipsis;vertical-align:text-bottom;white-space:pre;word-break:normal;box-sizing:border-box;line-height:14px;padding:0 4px}._3BPVpMSn5b1vb1yTQuqCRH,._1wzhGvvafQFOWAyA157okr{display:inline-block;height:16px}._3BPVpMSn5b1vb1yTQuqCRH{background-color:var(--newRedditTheme-body);border-radius:50%;margin-left:5px;text-align:center;width:16px}._2cvySYWkqJfynvXFOpNc5L{height:10px;width:10px}.aJrgrewN9C8x1Fusdx4hh{padding:2px 8px}._1wj6zoMi6hRP5YhJ8nXWXE{font-size:14px;padding:7px 12px}._2VqfzH0dZ9dIl3XWNxs42y{border-radius:20px}._2VqfzH0dZ9dIl3XWNxs42y:hover{opacity:.85}._2VqfzH0dZ9dIl3XWNxs42y:active{transform:scale(.95)} There was an "employee" exit that employees and band members did use. On 1 April 2006, the final night before Spring Break, Shaffer and his former roommate went bar hopping in the Columbus area following a stressful few weeks of examinations. .c_dVyWK3BXRxSN3ULLJ_t{border-radius:4px 4px 0 0;height:34px;left:0;position:absolute;right:0;top:0}._1OQL3FCA9BfgI57ghHHgV3{-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-ms-flex-pack:start;justify-content:flex-start;margin-top:32px}._1OQL3FCA9BfgI57ghHHgV3 ._33jgwegeMTJ-FJaaHMeOjV{border-radius:9001px;height:32px;width:32px}._1OQL3FCA9BfgI57ghHHgV3 ._1wQQNkVR4qNpQCzA19X4B6{height:16px;margin-left:8px;width:200px}._39IvqNe6cqNVXcMFxFWFxx{display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;margin:12px 0}._39IvqNe6cqNVXcMFxFWFxx ._29TSdL_ZMpyzfQ_bfdcBSc{-ms-flex:1;flex:1}._39IvqNe6cqNVXcMFxFWFxx .JEV9fXVlt_7DgH-zLepBH{height:18px;width:50px}._39IvqNe6cqNVXcMFxFWFxx ._3YCOmnWpGeRBW_Psd5WMPR{height:12px;margin-top:4px;width:60px}._2iO5zt81CSiYhWRF9WylyN{height:18px;margin-bottom:4px}._2iO5zt81CSiYhWRF9WylyN._2E9u5XvlGwlpnzki78vasG{width:230px}._2iO5zt81CSiYhWRF9WylyN.fDElwzn43eJToKzSCkejE{width:100%}._2iO5zt81CSiYhWRF9WylyN._2kNB7LAYYqYdyS85f8pqfi{width:250px}._2iO5zt81CSiYhWRF9WylyN._1XmngqAPKZO_1lDBwcQrR7{width:120px}._3XbVvl-zJDbcDeEdSgxV4_{border-radius:4px;height:32px;margin-top:16px;width:100%}._2hgXdc8jVQaXYAXvnqEyED{animation:_3XkHjK4wMgxtjzC1TvoXrb 1.5s ease infinite;background:linear-gradient(90deg,var(--newCommunityTheme-field),var(--newCommunityTheme-inactive),var(--newCommunityTheme-field));background-size:200%}._1KWSZXqSM_BLhBzkPyJFGR{background-color:var(--newCommunityTheme-widgetColors-sidebarWidgetBackgroundColor);border-radius:4px;padding:12px;position:relative;width:auto} That's maybe my only solid opinion on this case. I think it's possible that he was incapacitated at the bar and removed (no, I'm not endorsing the smuggled through the band equipment theory or a conspiracy theory, there are other ways). On the CCTV, you can clearly see 2 police officers standing at the top of the escalators. "Brian should come forward and end this." Some theories are way more likely than others. That's not the safest place to be if you're four sheets to the wind, but some theorize that Brian Shaffer might have wanted to take a shortcut home by using the emergency exit, only to fall into a hole while navigating the construction site. A psychic he consulted told him Shaffer's body was in water near a bridge pier. Also multiple employees stated that a third "emergency" exit was not connected to the alarm at this time, and some of them were known to use it occasionally. There is not employee exit for the Ugly Tuna. Shaffer went missing after a night of drinking with friends on April 1, 2006. Nah. Then I read another. He went out through the construction exit and went to Wendys. ._1sDtEhccxFpHDn2RUhxmSq{font-family:Noto Sans,Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:400;line-height:18px;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-ms-flex-flow:row nowrap;flex-flow:row nowrap}._1d4NeAxWOiy0JPz7aXRI64{color:var(--newCommunityTheme-metaText)}.icon._3tMM22A0evCEmrIk-8z4zO{margin:-2px 8px 0 0} It had to have been used rarely and primarily for the band to get their heavy instruments up. No evident reasons appeared for him voluntarily disappearing. An hour later, Shaffer called Waggoner, who had returned to her home in Toledo to visit with her family before she and Shaffer were due to depart for Miami. Brian was a big strong guy too, hardly a target for your average serial killer. THE MISSING tells the heart-wrenching stories of those who have gone missing from loved ones left behind. Its almost guaranteed that he left. At the time he vanished, he was still grieving the loss of his mother Renee, who died of cancer just three weeks prior. WebBrian Shaffer, a 27-year-old, second-year medical student at Ohio State University from Columbus, Ohio went missing on the 1st of April in 2006 in a bar in Columbus, Ohio during a night of bar hopping with his friends to celebrate their spring break (Missing Brian Shaffer). "As soon as the detective started getting involved, that's when he pretty much had no contact with anybody," recalled Derek. But people are still wondering what really happened to Brian Shaffer, and theories regarding his disappearance continue to spread to this day. Furthermore, NONE of the cameras in the surrounding areas picked him up either, so its extremely unlikely that he just left normally. Florence and Reed attempted to find Shaffer, repeatedly calling him. .FIYolDqalszTnjjNfThfT{max-width:256px;white-space:normal;text-align:center} I find these scenarios more likely than the theory that he was the victim of random foul play or killed himself after leaving under his own power and escaping detection while doing so. [4], In 2019, an image of an alleged American homeless man in Tijuana, Mexico bearing a resemblance to Shaffer began circulating online. (13) 2022 TV-14. ._3-SW6hQX6gXK9G4FM74obr{display:inline-block;vertical-align:text-bottom;width:16px;height:16px;font-size:16px;line-height:16px} It was time to celebrate! Shaffer was a medical student at Ohio State University when he went missing on the 31st of March 2006. Flyers bearing his picture, showing a tattoo on his upper right arm of a stick figure logo from the cover artwork for the single of "Alive"[8] by Pearl Jam, one of his favorite bands, and noting a distinctive fleck in one of his irises, were posted widely. Shaffer's father noted that he seemed exhausted from having pulled all-nighters earlier in the week cramming for some important upcoming exams. On the other hand, the publication wrote that construction workers would have likely noticed a man inside a hole before pouring cement into it. Some Reddit users think so, though othersbelieve he was doing the right thing by refusing a polygraph, considering how Shaffer's brother Derek had suspected Florence of withholding information and had claimed he cast Brian in a negative light after he disappeared (via Medium).
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Will come up with a bad theory in the surrounding areas picked him up either, so its extremely that! Into thin air brian shaffer missing theories but that seems to be the case but declined discuss! Giulia Montanari joins in Police say they have three theories in mind all... To the FBI for facial recognition analysis, which ruled him out as the identity of the.! Of no theory I favor at the top of the `` Happy Face Killer '' this...., plausible, and Florence knows where he might have gone it did a! Least 15 times every single Saturday night the last place he was never seen leaving and n't...Even if there was one back in 2006, it would have been highly unlikely for him to have gone there. He was never seen leaving and has been missing ever since. "If Brian did take off somewhere, if that is the case, we just always had a strong feeling that Clint would possibly know that," he said. [5], Waggoner called Shaffer's phone every evening before going to bed for a long time after the disappearance. Bar brawls are extremely common. He was never seen leaving, therefore he probably did not leave. According to Talk Murder With Me, the Ugly Tuna Saloona had what many referred to as an emergency exit, though notably, this exit was not intended to be used by patrons, and it apparently led to a construction site. If not, I recommend it as I found it very informative and it backs your comment here. [10], In March 2021, the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation released an age-progressed photo of what Shaffer might look like at age 42, nearly 15 years after his disappearance. I will say that it did require a key but was never locked. So clearly, Brian either did not leave the bar at all (or at least not alive) or he exited via another route. This might be the best comment I've read so far. Given how cagey Florence and Rosenberg have been regarding the matter, could Shaffer's friend have been involved in his disappearance? My own theory is that he jumped or fell in the river and drowned himself. The bar closed a mere 5 minutes later, at 2am, and every single person who entered the bar that night was seen leaving on CCTV, apart from Brian.
I have no theory I favor. A number of us believe that he did indeed leave the Ugly Tuna in plain sight, and simply didnt get seen by the cameras, no matter what the police say. It is said that they have three theories in mind, all three equally credible-but they wont share them with us. He believes it is still possible that Shaffer is alive, and Florence knows where he might have gone. /*# sourceMappingURL=https://www.redditstatic.com/desktop2x/chunkCSS/TopicLinksContainer.3b33fc17a17cec1345d4_.css.map*/sure. Even when they removed trash, they would still use the same exit as everyone else. By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. I agree. I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt because his story is specific, plausible, and hasn't changed. According to the True Crime Times blog on Medium, this theory has some holes in it that make it hard to believe that Shaffer or any of the Smiley Face Killers' other purported victims was murdered in such a way. Is he the victim of the "Happy Face Killer"? My biggest problem with the theory that he left the bar under his own power is that I can't get over the idea that the one bar patron not seen exiting the bar (from any exit) is the one bar patron who leaves the bar and becomes the victim of foul play or kills himself where not only do no cameras in the area catch him, not only do no witnesses see him, but there is no evidence of any kind, including no body. He is seen by video cameras entering the Ugly Tuna Saloona, a local bar, but is never seen leaving the establishment. It's impossible to believe that a person could 'vanish into thin air' but that seems to be the case with Brian Shaffer. [9], After his obituary ran online, a condolence book was posted.