Found Deceased AZ - Benjamin Anderson, 41, Car found burned, Phoenix, 31 Dec 2021

[BrownBear]

A man has been reported missing out of Phoenix after friends found his car and home abandoned on Friday.

Benjamin Anderson, 41, was supposed to meet his friend, DS, for breakfast before Anderson called to cancel around 8 a.m.

DS said that he and another friend went to Anderson's apartment on Friday night and found money, debit and credit cards, as well as a wet towel on his bed. The towel seemed out of place, according to DS.

Concerned, DS tracked down Anderson's Lexus to a Sheridan Hotel off of Black Canyon Highway and allegedly saw three people around the car, none of whom were Anderson.

DS called 911 before finding out the car was later set on fire.

More at Man reported missing, car found burned | 12news.com

 

[ClaireNC]

Scary story. Definitely need more information. The family has set up a FB page: Log into Facebook

 

[swanniee11]

I'm a bit confused. Was his apt unlocked or did the friend have a key? The friend found the car and then later it was set on fire? So someone came back and set it on fire. Nobody saw that? Just trying to figure all this out. IMO

 

[JJ Ray]

So...looks like I have a new interest besides Daniel Robinson. This 'hook'? My wife and I lived at 10th st. and E. Maryland for 15 years and my mechanic's shop is on that corner. Intimately familiar with the area and the lifestyle along 7th St. In Uptown Phoenix.

 

[Psychic Sleuth]

Why did the friends go to his apartment and how did they get in? Also, how did they track down his car? And where are the car doors? This is so strange.

 

[katydid23]

And why were his money, debit and credit cards still there, on his bed? If he met with foul play I mean....weird

 

[Psychic Sleuth]

"his apartment was empty but his personal belongings were there"?

What exactly does that mean? Like no furnishings or anything or does that just mean HE was not there?

 

[JJ Ray]

Why did the friends go to his apartment and how did they get in? Also, how did they track down his car? And where are the car doors? This is so strange.

My guess is they all had "friend finder" apps and spare keys. (they never mention the phone location in the reporting)

 

[branmuffin]

Why did the friends go to his apartment and how did they get in? Also, how did they track down his car? And where are the car doors? This is so strange.

Here's an article that answers those questions.

Family, friends searching for missing man after car found burned in Phoenix

I think the friend may be making a few assumptions regarding the money. He says Ben left without money but he really can't say that without knowing how much cash he had before he left home. It sounds to me like it was a conscious effort on Ben's part to leave behind his credit cards and some cash.

It does sound like he left in a hurry leaving a wet towel on the bed. Was the bed made or slept in? Ben said he was tired earlier in the morning and passed on brunch. Did he go to sleep instead? Or was he ditching his friend for a different offer?

The car was a 2020 Lexus. I keep getting a vibe similar to Tim Bosma where he was lured by a prospective buyer of the vehicle only to get murdered. The difference here is that this car was torched. The most popular reason for torching a vehicle, according to the FBI is revenge. It's also used to conceal a crime like murder and to destroy DNA.

https://www.usfa.fema.gov/downloads/pdf/arson/aaw14_media_kit.pdf

Edited to correct make of vehicle.

 

[realanastasia]

Here's an article that answers those questions.

Family, friends searching for missing man after car found burned in Phoenix

I think the friend may be making a few assumptions regarding the money. He says Ben left without money but he really can't say that without knowing how much cash he had before he left home. It sounds to me like it was a conscious effort on Ben's part to leave behind his credit cards and some cash.

It does sound like he left in a hurry leaving a wet towel on the bed. Was the bed made or slept in? Ben said he was tired earlier in the morning and passed on brunch. Did he go to sleep instead? Or was he ditching his friend for a different offer?

The car was a 2020 Acura. I keep getting a vibe similar to Tim Bosma where he was lured by a prospective buyer of the vehicle only to get murdered. The difference here is that this car was torched. The most popular reason for torching a vehicle, according to the FBI is revenge. It's also used to conceal a crime like murder and to destroy DNA.

The article linked earlier in the thread states his car was a Lexus, not an Acura. And from the photo of the burned-out wreckage, I can clearly make out the Lexus emblem on the grille (looks like a small compact model).

 

[swanniee11]

What were his plans 12/31 ( New Years Eve?) did he meet people?

 

[realanastasia]

Lots more info here, including the car being a 2020 Lexus UX : $10,000 award for safe return of missing Phoenix man Ben Anderson

“Anderson, who was born and raised in Glendale, was supposed to have breakfast with DS, his friend of 24 years, on the morning of December 31.

Anderson called DS around 8 a.m. to cancel, citing fatigue. This wasn't "unusual," DS said, because Anderson had been up in northern Arizona visiting friends and had driven a lot. Approximately two minutes later, DS texted him about an issue related to his work as an executive concierge manager at PricewaterhouseCoopers. Anderson replied that it had been resolved.
DS told The Arizona Republic that was the last time he talked to Anderson.

Around 6 p.m., DS received a call from Anderson's aunt, Suzanne, saying she hadn't heard from him. He said that he would go over to his apartment. DS tried texting his friend, but the messages were not being shown as delivered, indicating Anderson's phone was off. As he was leaving, Anderson's other friend, Susan, called DS saying that Anderson was not responding to her calls and that they went straight to voicemail.

When DS arrived at Anderson's apartment, much was amiss.

His lights were on, his car was gone, there was money strewn on the counter, and his credit cards were in a little bowl next to the front door. Anderson was not there.

The normally tidy Anderson had a wet towel on his bed, which was unmade, and there were some clothes on the floor in the kitchen.

DS started making phone calls but no one had heard from him.

Another sign something was awry: DS guessed Anderson's password to his 'Find My Phone' app on Apple, and the last time it showed a location was at Anderson's apartment before 9 a.m. on December 31.

"He never turned his phone off so the fact that his phone hasn’t been pinged since and isn’t broadcasting any signals since then is highly unusual," DS told The Arizona Republic.”

Read the rest at the link—the friends, NOT Phoenix PD, tracked down his car and found it! They notified law enforcement, and as they did not respond until later, chased the trio who stole it until it became too dangerous to continue. They determined where the car was later abandoned, notified LE again, and the cops didn’t show up until the car had been torched and left in a known “drug location” (Phoenix PD’s words, not mine). I’m so impressed by the lengths his friends have gone to to attempt to find Ben—way beyond the call of duty, and way way way more committed to finding him than Phoenix PD has been.


IMO, and I hope I’m wrong, but: This is giving me very strong Alan White vibes.

 

[branmuffin]

The article linked earlier in the thread states his car was a Lexus, not an Acura. And from the photo of the burned-out wreckage, I can clearly make out the Lexus emblem on the grille (looks like a small compact model).

You are correct. I will correct my post to reflect the proper make of the vehicle. Thanks.

 

[Knox]

Here's an article that answers those questions.

Family, friends searching for missing man after car found burned in Phoenix

I think the friend may be making a few assumptions regarding the money. He says Ben left without money but he really can't say that without knowing how much cash he had before he left home. It sounds to me like it was a conscious effort on Ben's part to leave behind his credit cards and some cash.

It does sound like he left in a hurry leaving a wet towel on the bed. Was the bed made or slept in? Ben said he was tired earlier in the morning and passed on brunch. Did he go to sleep instead? Or was he ditching his friend for a different offer?

The car was a 2020 Lexus. I keep getting a vibe similar to Tim Bosma where he was lured by a prospective buyer of the vehicle only to get murdered. The difference here is that this car was torched. The most popular reason for torching a vehicle, according to the FBI is revenge. It's also used to conceal a crime like murder and to destroy DNA.

Edited to correct make of vehicle.

Woah, that was one detailed story!!! I'm trying to figure out how Benjamin could go missing a little over an hour after he and his friend spoke and exchanged a text message on New Years Eve morning?

Another sign something was awry: DS guessed Anderson's password to his 'Find My Phone' app on Apple, and the last time it showed a location was at Anderson's apartment before 9 a.m. on December 31.

"He never turned his phone off so the fact that his phone hasn’t been pinged since and isn’t broadcasting any signals since then is highly unusual," DS told The Arizona Republic.
$10,000 award for safe return of missing Phoenix man Ben Anderson

If someone came to his apartment with ill intent, would they leave money strewn about the counter and his credit cards in a bowl? What about a wet towel on the bed and clothes on the floor in the kitchen? The detail about the kitchen and a wet towel, make me think about a impromptu quickie and shower afterwards? Was Benjamin in a relationship with anyone?

 

[realanastasia]

Complete conjecture here:

The clothes on the kitchen floor make me wonder if maybe Ben had someone over for a romantic encounter the previous evening who had nefarious intentions. I can imagine Ben begging off of his breakfast date with his 8 AM call to his buddy, and then the visitor just got in the shower while maybe Ben went to make coffee in the kitchen. The visitor could’ve gotten out of the shower, tossed the towel on the bed (which sounds like something the fastidious Ben would never do), gone into the kitchen under the guise of an amorous encounter, gotten Ben to disrobe, and then Tased or otherwise incapacitated him. Turning off his phone would be easy, and he could’ve been loaded into the car and taken away.

 

[branmuffin]

Woah, that was one detailed story!!! I'm trying to figure out how Benjamin could go missing a little over an hour after he and his friend spoke and exchanged a text message on New Years Eve morning?

Another sign something was awry: DS guessed Anderson's password to his 'Find My Phone' app on Apple, and the last time it showed a location was at Anderson's apartment before 9 a.m. on December 31.

"He never turned his phone off so the fact that his phone hasn’t been pinged since and isn’t broadcasting any signals since then is highly unusual," DS told The Arizona Republic.
$10,000 award for safe return of missing Phoenix man Ben Anderson

If someone came to his apartment with ill intent, would they leave money strewn about the counter and his credit cards in a bowl? What about a wet towel on the bed and clothes on the floor in the kitchen? The detail about the kitchen and a wet towel, make me think about a impromptu quickie and shower afterwards? Was Benjamin in a relationship with anyone?

That's what I was thinking too. A relationship that he kept hidden which could be for a multitude of reasons: jealous friend/boyfriend, didn't want to be hassled about breaking covid protocols, an unsavory character that might have elicited a 'you've got to be kidding me', or the most frightening a pick up that turned into a nightmare where he was taken from his apartment to perhaps withdraw money from his accounts.

 

[Knox]

Complete conjecture here:

The clothes on the kitchen floor make me wonder if maybe Ben had someone over for a romantic encounter the previous evening who had nefarious intentions. I can imagine Ben begging off of his breakfast date with his 8 AM call to his buddy, and then the visitor just got in the shower while maybe Ben went to make coffee in the kitchen. The visitor could’ve gotten out of the shower, tossed the towel on the bed (which sounds like something the fastidious Ben would never do), gone into the kitchen under the guise of an amorous encounter, gotten Ben to disrobe, and then Tased or otherwise incapacitated him. Turning off his phone would be easy, and he could’ve been loaded into the car and taken away.

My thoughts are along this line as well. But at 6'1 250lbs, he's not a small man to move. My thought is forced to the car at gunpoint. If this was a hook-up with an unknown person (forgive my candor), this could all make sense I suppose. But what's the motive if not robbery? The car? Burnt after they knew someone was on to them?

No one has said anything about his banking activity, was they any that day? Any suspicious atm withdrawls?

 

[Knox]

<modsnip - quoted post removed>
I'm getting Alan White (Texas) vibes.

 

[realanastasia]

I'm getting Alan White (Texas) vibes.

IMO, and I hope I’m wrong, but: This is giving me very strong Alan White vibes.

I totally agree.

 

[realanastasia]

My thoughts are along this line as well. But at 6'1 250lbs, he's not a small man to move. My thought is forced to the car at gunpoint. If this was a hook-up with an unknown person (forgive my candor), this could all make sense I suppose. But what's the motive if not robbery? The car? Burnt after they knew someone was on to them?

No one has said anything about his banking activity, was they any that day? Any suspicious atm withdrawls?

All conjecture and hypothesis/IMO only, but:

Wonder if it could be related to the “issue” Ben was having at work (PriceWaterhouseCoopers). Friend DS indicates on his LinkedIn that he worked there (PwC) until 2020, but now works in ethics and compliance elsewhere. So if there was a work issue serious enough for DS to inquire about it on a holiday, it must have been something DS knew was weighing heavy on Ben’s mind. Maybe Ben deliberately looped in his friend because it was ethical in nature, rather than about a shared client or shared workplace problem…? Relationship with a direct supervisor or a direct report/subordinate? If company policies prohibit these or they result in termination of employment for one or both people involved, then there might’ve been a motive for someone to want Ben gone.