Discovery of the Abandoned Jeep

This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed human. Hello, I'm hugely excited to reveal that Unexplained will be coming to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival this August. The year is nineteen hundred. Three lighthouse keepers stand watch on a desolate island far from home. until one day, they completely vanish from the face of the earth. Unexplained life brings the haunting Flananes mystery to the stage in a gripping, immersive performance that plunges audiences into one of history's most chilling and enduring unsolved disappearances. I'll be performing at the space at Surgeons Hall. 10 05 p.m. every night, from August 7th to the 29th. Excluding the sixteenth and twenty third. please go to unexplained podcast dot com forward slash events for more information. Or you can purchase tickets direct by going to thespaceuk.com forward slash shows forward slash twenty twenty six. Forward slash unexplained hyphen life. I look forward to seeing you there. gazed out from the driver's seat of his SUV at the wide desert vista spread out before him. Although it was only just after nine in the morning. The Mercury was already well into the eighties. It might even have been hotter, were it not for the scattering of clouds that had brought a recent run of much needed rain to the area. It was june twenty third, twenty twenty one. And the man Can Elliot. was waiting for a colleague to join him to inspect a borehole that had just been made for a water well intended to serve a new residential development just to the west of the White Tank Mountains, near Phoenix, Arizona. All Ken could see for miles ahead of him was the bare bleached soil of the vast Sonoran desert. and its scattering of pebbles, cacti, and brittle bush. The occasional spindly Palo Verde, and twisted ironwood could be seen too, clustering along the bottom of the many dry washes. The traverse the undulating desiccated terrain. Ken breathed in the deep, musky scent of creosote bush as it wafted in through the window of his car. Finally, he saw a blue jeep renegade driving slowly toward him along the bumpy desert track. Ken climbed out of his vehicle. And prepared to meet the Jeep's driver as he pulled up next to him. Daniel Robinson slid out of his Jeep. Ken took in the athletic, but slight 24 year old man. with his close cropped hair. Blue jeans and Czech shirt, and orange high-vis vest. Just like his own. This would be the one and only time the two men would meet. after Daniel Robinson drove off a little later that morning. He would never be seen again. You're listening to Unexplained. And I'm Richard McClain. Smith. as Ken and Daniel greeted each other. Ken noticed that the young man was missing the lower part of his right forearm. A native of South Carolina. Daniel Cornelius Robinson had been born without a right hand and the lower part of his arm. but refused to use a prosthetic or to let it impact his life in any way. Some say it was exactly that attitude which helped him excel in athletics during his time as a student. at the College of Charleston in South Carolina. Daniel would go on to graduate in 2017 with a degree in geology. Described by his family as bright and adventurous, Daniel had relocated to Arizona the previous year. after taking a job as a hydrogeologist with a company called Matrix New World. The environmental engineering company was involved in a number of projects out west, including this one. to test and develop groundwater sources. to supply the ever growing urban fringes of Phoenix. Daniel and Ken were meeting to assess a new well site. No sooner had Daniel arrived, a heavy storm moved in. It was so intense, they could feel the static in the air. So for a while. Fearing an imminent lightning strike. The two men sat in Ken's car as they waited for the rain to pass. Despite this being their first meeting. Penn couldn't help but think there was something off with Daniel. The men talked amiably as the heavy rain splattered the windscreen. But every so often Daniel seemed to pull back. Then turn to look out at the window. And stare out at the desert. It was around 945 when Daniel abruptly asked Ken if he wanted to go back to Phoenix. Ken assumed he meant it in the sense of whether it was worth waiting any longer for the rain to end. So he told Daniel to wait a moment. as he pulled up a weather app. to find out when it was due to stop. But no sooner had he done so. Without saying a word. Daniel opened the door and got out of the car. Ken watched with confusion as Daniel ambled back over to his Jeep. then turned to give Ken a brief wave before climbing into his vehicle and driving off. Startled by the sudden departure. Ken could only look on as the Jeep made its way back down the dirt road. And disappeared out of sight. Though his view of the vehicles was obscured by the terrain. Ken knew that in just 2,000 feet, Daniel would come to a spot where the road split. There, he could either turn to the east and head back towards the city. or west and out into the wide Sonoran desert. Laughing it off. Ken called his boss to fill him in on the unexpected turn of events. Then shifted his car into gear. and drove off himself. Ken reached the split in the dirt road. He saw the rain had washed away all but the most recent set of tire tracks. Those belonging to Daniel's Jeep. Much to his surprise, they didn't turn east toward Phoenix. West. into the vast expanse of the desert. Around mid-afternoon, Ken's boss phoned to ask if he'd spoken to Daniel at all since they last met. No one at the company had heard from him since the morning. Ken cast his mind back to their meeting earlier. And how distant Daniel had seemed when they spoke. You began to get worried. A short time later, Ken was back in his truck heading out to the well site. where he and Daniel had met earlier that day. Scrambling up to a high vantage point. He stared out long and hard across the desert. but saw no sign of Daniel or his vehicle. By late afternoon. Daniel's family were becoming concerned. Although Daniel was adventurous, He also kept in frequent contact with his family. typically calling or texting his father and siblings several times a day. Especially his sister Davisha. Who also lived in the Phoenix area. It just wasn't like him to sudden go quiet. A little after seven that night. with no one in the family having heard from Daniel in twenty four hours. Army veteran David Robinson. phoned the Buckeye Police Department from his home in South Carolina. reported his son as missing. police report filed that evening was characteristically blunt and to the point. Twenty four year old Daniel Robinson, it reads. It's black. With short hair. Missing his right arm. And has no prosthetic. No visible tattoos. No facial hair. No medical issue. but has been acting. The father last heard from his son yesterday. This morning he met someone at a job site. No one has heard from him since. Police began their search by attempting to call Daniel on his cell phone. But no one picked up. Then they called his employer, Matrix New World. Who'd yet to hear from him? and had little to add to what was already known. That evening, Daniel's sister Davisha went to his apartment in Tempe, in central Phoenix. But the windows were dark. And there was no sign of Daniel. Nor was his Jeep renegade parked outside. All the police had to go on was Ken Elliott's account from when Daniel was last seen. and the coordinates to the work site where he and Daniel had met. Spot is surrounded by nothing but desert and ranchland. With the dry bed of the Hasiampa River just over a mile to the west. The nearest settlement was about eight miles further west, out in the desert, in the direction that Daniel had last been seen heading. It was the fenced compound. of the Our Lady of Solitude Monastery. A small enclosed community of contemplative nuns. The same day Daniel was reported missing. Two officers from the Buckeye Police Department drove out to where Daniel and Ken had met that morning. as a red setting sun sent slanting rays across the desert. They drove the surrounding dirt trails for four hours until well after dark. but found no trace of Daniel or his vehicle. The following morning, the police quizzed Daniel's father, David, about his son's state of mind. David insisted there'd be nothing in his recent phone calls with his son to suggest that he was suicidal or wanted to hurt himself. As for drug abuse or other addiction issues. David said Daniel had no such problem with anything like that. but smoked marijuana from time to time, which was legal in Arizona. David Robinson did say, however, that his son had been acting a little odd lately. Daniel's shift in mood, according to his father. seemed to coincide with his meeting of a woman. that he'd apparently fallen in love with. But when David questioned his son about the woman, He didn't seem to know much about her. Pleas Daniel's father to check his son's social media for any clues. The He found a link to an Instagram account of someone named Caitlin. Displaying a profile picture of a young woman with straight dark hair. Smiling at the camera and holding a dog. But then David noticed something strange. Not only were there no new posts on Daniel's account, But all the photos on his Instagram and Facebook accounts About the same. Police interviewed Daniel's sister Davisha to She confirmed that Daniel had lived alone in an apartment in Tempe for the last year. When asked if there been any change in his usual character in the last few months or weeks, Davisha couldn't help reflecting on one of the last times she'd seen him. He'd ask to come to her place. He just sat there for half an hour without saying anything. before simply getting up and walking out of the apartment. brother had told her, too, that he'd recently met a woman and was in love with her. She couldn't confirm if they were actually in a relationship, but the way Daniel talked about her, she said, suggested that perhaps they were. Curiously, Daniel told his sister. the woman had introduced him to a podcast, which he claimed had profoundly changed the way he looked at life. The Visha didn't have the women's contact details. But remembered Daniel mentioning that she lived in Levine. West side of Phoenix. police conducted a ground search near the well site where Daniel was last seen. One officer checked. You connect. A vehicle tracking system that Daniel's Jeep had supposedly been linked to. But the GPS coordinates for the vehicle were all set to zero. The reason for this could be due to one of three things. Either the system application had not been properly updated in the vehicle or or someone had tampered with the system. An attempt to ping Daniel's cell phone for its location was also unsuccessful. Meanwhile, a separate search was initiated to try and track down the mysterious Caitlin. Incredibly. Thanks to the Arizona Motor Vehicle Records, a woman was soon found matching her description. Police eventually got hold of her. She was sorry to hear that Daniel was missing. But she hadn't heard from him either. Then she explained how she knew him in the first place. on Saturday, June 12, and the so-called Valley of the Sun was living up to its name. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, as the urban sprawl of Phoenix shimmered under a smoggy heat haze. It was the first day the city had reached 110 degrees Fahrenheit that year. And an excessive heat warning had been issued by the authorities. Caitlin and a friend of hers were hanging out at Caitlin's home in Levine. On the western edge of the city. They were doing what many people did on days like this. Staying inside with the air conditioning on. Watching TV and drinking. The temperature barely dropped as darkness fell, and neither woman felt motivated to go out to eat. So they ordered a takeout. About half an hour later, the doorbell rang, and Caitlin got up to answer it. She opened the door to find a smiling, friendly faced young man. Holding their delivery items. He told Caitlin that his name was Daniel. He had a warm smile and a bright demeanor. So feeling somewsi. Caitlin invited the man to come inside and hang out with her and her friend. The three shared the food and drank some more. Then When Daniel eventually left, he and Caitlin shared phone numbers. Sometime after two AM Caitlin sent Daniel a text with a link to a podcast on spirituality. She thought no more of the encounter until a day or so later. When Daniel texted her. that he'd accidentally left his shade canopy for his car at her place. He wanted to know when he could come over and get it. It was Monday, june fourteenth. day after Daniel left her apartment. Caitlin received the first text message. Hey. I accidentally left my canopy outside your house. Is it still there? If so, is it okay if I pick it up? Also, the podcast was great, wrote Daniel. Caitlin replied the next day. Yes, you can pick it up whenever. Daniel replied soon after, that he could come over straight away to get it. Or the following day, if Caitlin preferred. Caitlin hadn't yet replied and was away in Flagstaff when she got an alert on her phone. door camera had picked up movement outside her house. Watching back the footage, she was a little surprised to see Daniel at the door. She texted him back. Hi. I saw you on the camera. I'm in Flagstaff and will be home later tonight. If you want, I can put it out front by the chairs before I head out for work tomorrow morning. Daniel replied an hour later with a red heart emoji. Then later that night, with the words, I'm sorry. Stay. Caitlin got another alert on her phone while she was out at the flat. Daniel at her door again. Caitlin asked later that evening that he stop showing up at her door unannounced. Okay, I won't ever again. Caitlin went out to the garage to have a look for the canopy, but couldn't find it anywhere. I don't see it in the garage, she texted Daniel moments later. Daniel it seems. had already been in the garage and found it for himself. I already have it, he replied. I just wanted to tell you I'm sorry for disappearing the other day, he said then, with a sad face emoji. Then moments later. He sent another text. I couldn't stop thinking about you. Caitlin didn't know what to say to that. hoping that Daniel might get the message. A few days later. Daniel text it again. Can we hang out? Having at first felt irritated by Daniel's unwanted advances, Caitlyn was now starting to feel harassed. having told him she wasn't free to hang out. Daniel had replied simply, Okay. It seemed perhaps that that might be the end of it. Then later that night. Just after midnight. He sent another message. I love you, it read. Again, Caitlin didn't quite know how to respond to that. So once more, she opted not to reply. The following morning, Daniel sent another message to ask if Caitlin was at home. In an effort to get him to back off, she decided to be straight with him. Honestly, you showing up at my house unannounced made me extremely uncomfortable. I don't see us hanging out any time soon, she wrote. At three thirty six PM later that day. Daniel Roadback. I'm outside of your place. Now feeling increasingly anxious. Caitlyn tried again to get him to back off. telling him it wasn't okay to keep turning up at her house when she expressly told him not to. Do you hate me? Daniel replied later. I don't hate you, said Caitlin. Clearly at the end of her tether. But please leave me alone. There was one last text from Daniel the following day. It came on Tuesday, twenty second of June. three oh seven PM The world can get better. But I'll have to take all the time I can or we can. Whatever to name it. I'd like to see you again. We'll never see you again. The very next day. Daniel went missing. Two days after his disappearance, on Friday june twenty fifth, The Buckeye police carried out another ground search around the site where Daniel had last been seen. Police helicopter conducted a much wider search from the air. But still nothing was found. Daniel Robinson had been missing for just over a week. When on Wednesday, june thirtieth. detective was finally assigned to the case. Larry Biffin was a decorated officer who'd served for many years with the Buckeye Police Department. Biffin poured over the case notes, he couldn't help but be puzzled by the whole thing. Having seen that all Daniel's Instagram posts have been deleted. He began by making a request to the social media company to retrieve them. and set about getting in touch with all of Daniel's contacts. A friend of Daniel's named Antonio had a 17-minute phone call with Daniel on June 16. The first day he'd gone to Caitlin's house unannounced. Antonio said that his friend seemed more hyper than usual. and talked about two girls he'd met while working as a delivery driver. Daniel said that he'd hooked up with one of the girls. Antonio commented that although very social. Daniel hadn't made many friends since moving to Arizona, and could at times be quite gullible. imply that Daniel may have read more into the encounter than the woman intended. Another friend Ruben. spoke with Daniel just after he texted Caitlin for the last time on the twenty second. They only spoke for five minutes. Ruben, who lived in Florida, was excited about a vacation he was planning to Arizona and California. and was looking forward to catching up with his friend. He was disappointed when Daniel didn't seem to want to talk about his visit. He said his friend appeared to be down. Preoccupied and off somehow. After gaining access to Daniel's apartment. Detective Biffin found no obvious indications of foul play. Or any sign that Daniel had packed for a trip. Since most of his possessions were still there. Bifin then had flyers placed at the two small local airports in the Buckeye area. Asking for any crew flying in and out. to keep a lookout for Daniel and his vehicle. Then he arranged for another air search to be conducted over the region where Daniel had last been seen. In the early morning of Friday July ninth. It was already ninety four degrees Fahrenheit. when Detective Biffin strode out across the baking asphalt, at the junction of Sun Valley Parkway and Cactus Road, and shook hands with Daniel's father, David Robinson. Mr Robinson had driven all the way from South Carolina to Phoenix. The day after he learned of his son's disappearance. He was frantic with worry, and had already undertaken several searches of the desert himself. by local volunteers with no result. Daniel's father could only watch as the two search planes traversed the sky back and forth. while the thermometer climbed steadily to a hundred and six Fahrenheit. But the search crew found nothing. And nor did they the following day, when another plane was sent up to help. It had been over two weeks now. And not one shred of evidence to where Daniel Robinson had gone. Having grown tired of the police's seeming inability to locate his son, David Robinson hired a private detective named Jeffrey McGrath to undertake a separate investigation on his behalf. Ten days later, on Monday nineteenth of july. A rancher spot something at the bottom of a ravine on his land. Getting out of his truck to investigate further. He saw then it was a badly damaged blue jeep. that had rolled onto its passenger side. When he called the police to report it, a quick check on the number plate confirmed it was Daniel's Jeep. A short time later, Detective Larry Biffin was making his way out to the site with a team of officers in tow. Their route took them out beyond the urban sprawl of Phoenix, and into the dusty, sun bleached desert beyond. The further out they went, the smaller the roads became, until eventually they found themselves in the foothills the White Tank Mountains, heading west along a narrow dirt track. Cresting the top of a rise, Biffin and his entourage finally arrived at the top of the ravine. And there at the bottom of it was Daniel's G. Biffin got out of his car and slipped down into the ravine to get a better look. The vehicle's front bumper had crumpled where it had hit the dirt. Driver's window was shattered. And the windscreen and roof were damaged too. All of the interior airbags had been deployed. but there was no sign of Daniel inside. Biffin found something unexpected. About three feet from the wreckage, gathered in a messy pile. with what he assumed to be most, if not all, the clothes Daniel had been wearing when he disappeared. It included a pair of jeans. A faded orange high viz vest. Bearing the Matrix New World company logo. as well as a t shirt and a pair of socks. Examining the genes, Biffin found a wallet in the back pocket. Pulling it out. He found Daniel's ID inside it. along with multiple debit and credit card, but no cash. Despite the substantial damage the vehicle, There was nothing to indicate that the driver had been injured at all. Biffin inspected the Jeep's interior more closely, he found Daniel's cell phone. The keys to the vehicle and his apartment. as well as a backpack containing his laptop and some documents. There were other miscellaneous items too. clothing. Basketball. Quite a few unopened bottles of water. The detective straightened back up. Not quite knowing what to think. It was certainly strange, he thought, how they'd searched the area multiple times. but not spotted the Jeep, despite it being fairly out in the open. And something else bugged him about it too. It seemed unusually clean for a vehicle that had supposedly crashed out there almost four weeks previously. as Detective Biffin stared down at the wreckage. He was joined by the rancher, who'd found the vehicle in the first place. He too was perplexed as to how the Jeep had lain there undetected for such a long time. And just like Detective Biffin. Even with the recent monsoon rains, he couldn't for the life of him understand how a vehicle exposed to four weeks of desert wind. Sand and dust. When officers search the area around the vehicle. There was nothing to suggest that Daniel had spent any time at the site. There were no empty water bottles, for example. No footprints appearing to lead away from the vehicle. At the end. Finding Daniel's Jeep seemed to only raise more questions than it had answers. Detective Biffin gazed at Daniel's upturn hard hat. lying in the bottom of the ruined vehicle. Now filled with rainwater. Then looked up and out. The vastness of the desert stretched out before him. Was Daniel Robinson dead? Or alive. If he was dead. Why couldn't they find his body? And if he was alive. Where on earth was he? You've been listening to Unexplained Season Nine, Episode Twive. The second and final part will be released next Friday. June the eleventh. This episode was written by Diane Hope. And Richard McClain Smith. Thank you as ever for listening. Unexplained is an AV Club production podcast created by Richard McClain Smith. All other elements of the podcast, including the music, are also produced by me. Richard McClain Smith. Unexplained the book and audiobook is now available to buy worldwide. You can purchase from Amazon, Barnes and Noble. Waterstones and other bookstores. Please subscribe to and rate the show wherever you get your podcasts. and feel free to get in touch with any thoughts or ideas regarding the stories you've heard on the show. Perhaps you have an explanation or a story of your own you'd like to share. You can find out more at unexplained podcast dot com and reaches online through X and Blue Sky, but unexplained pod. And Facebook. At facebook.com Forward slash. Unexplained Podcast.