Bulgaria - Lars Mittank, 28, German tourist, Varna airport, 8 July 2014

[dotr]

Hi guys. I just wanted to stop in and say I've been spreading Lars' missing poster around to truckers and any cars I see with license plates from Poland, Romania, Bulgaria etc... Sometimes (if there's no language barrier) I give them a small pile so they can spread them when they get back there. I'm hoping something will come of it. I haven't been doing much else about this (or any) case other than that, because I have to take care of myself a bit. Not doing too great and 'thinking' is quite the chore right now. But, printing and handing out I can do.

Thanks so much JanetElaine, hope you feel better soon, wishing all the best for your recovery, take care!

:getwell:

 

[Brainy]

I think this is what happened:

Lars had a head injury and started developing strange behavioral patterns and perhaps some paranoia and delusions. I work in the medical field and have cared for many that have had head injuries. The consequences of such injuries can be devastating, of course, the extent of the injury will determine the effects on the person. An individual can become completely different. There is a notable decline in cognitive function, ability to reason, communicate and even speak. I knew a woman once that had a head injury after a motor vehicle accident. Even though she was physically independent, there was a significant decline in mental and cognitive Bility. She would have bizarre episodes of anxiety attacks that would be completely inexplicable and unfounded. A lot of times you could not comprehend her speech. She had an erratic sleep cycle, where she would sleep for an hour and then stay awake for a few hours and then sleep for another hour. It was heartbreaking to see a previously function woman have all these things happening to her without her being able control any of it. She was extremely moody and emotionally volatile. She would get so confused at times she would demand to talk to the governor, and have hallucinations like seeing her cats in the room. Lots of it was intermittent, there was pretty much no on or off button. It was extremely unpredictable, not knowing what you're going to get.

So, being aware of Lars' behavior, my best guess is that he had a head injury and he just basically started having these weird behavioral and cognitive issues. If I remember this right, he texted his mom, while he was at a hotel, freaking out that four men are following him and they are after the pill. And then the video of him running out and going into the forest. What? Yes, it does not make sense. This is exactly how would someone with head injury act. There is no reasoning, it's just a reaction due to the significant alteration that takes place in the brain after the injury.

I think Lars is dead. He might have died of exposure to elements or he could have just became homeless and starved to death.


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[CircuitGuy]

When he runs away, it is as if he is running for his life, but it's odd that he doesn't look back to see if whatever he's afraid is getting closer or if he's escaping.

 

[dotr]

When he runs away, it is as if he is running for his life, but it's odd that he doesn't look back to see if whatever he's afraid is getting closer or if he's escaping.

True enough! Maybe he is running seemingly for his very life, towards someone or thing?
speculation.

 

[neesaki]

And, I'm hoping if he did suffer a head injury and became homeless, that he will be one of the ones who are blessed to miraculously live and survive. Maybe he's still alive?! raying:

 

[Elainera]

True enough! Maybe he is running seemingly for his very life, towards someone or thing?
speculation.

I agree. I think he had it stuck in his mind that "they" won't let him leave the country, he said something like this to his mom in one of his last phone calls to her. He hoped to get on a plane but when the airport doctor suggested that he should not yet fly with his injured ear he felt his only way of "escape" was via the highway that runs near the airport. This is what he was running towards imo.

 

[B.B.]

I agree. I think he had it stuck in his mind that "they" won't let him leave the country, he said something like this to his mom in one of his last phone calls to her. He hoped to get on a plane but when the airport doctor suggested that he should not yet fly with his injured ear he felt his only way of "escape" was via the highway that runs near the airport. This is what he was running towards imo.

That doesn't make sense. He got money and a ticket for a bus that could drive him to Germany. If the doctor says suggests that he's not ready to fly, he was able to take the bus without any problems


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[Elainera]

That doesn't make sense. He got money and a ticket for a bus that could drive him to Germany. If the doctor says suggests that he's not ready to fly, he was able to take the bus without any problems


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Realistically, he was able to take any kind of transport "without any problems". But subjectively, he felt there are problems with all the options available to him. Maybe he felt hitching a ride with a private person was 'safer' than any type of public transport?

 

[dotr]

https://www.google.ca/search?q=lars...=Bsr6WPfcG5y9jwT4yo-ACg#imgrc=D-5Nh182PbQh6M:

 

[B.B.]

Realistically, he was able to take any kind of transport "without any problems". But subjectively, he felt there are problems with all the options available to him. Maybe he felt hitching a ride with a private person was 'safer' than any type of public transport?

It would be good to know if it was a German or a Bulgarian touring-coach company. IMHO as a german u are more comfort with your compatriots. So if it was a German company I don't think he feels safer by ride with some private .


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[BethAnn777]

It would be good to know if it was a German or a Bulgarian touring-coach company. IMHO as a german u are more comfort with your compatriots. So if it was a German company I don't think he feels safer by ride with some private .


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Bumping up for Lars.

 

[JanetElaine]

I'm still handing out his posters to truckers and other cars from the Balkan states... it's about all I can think to do.

 

[dotr]

I'm still handing out his posters to truckers and other cars from the Balkan states... it's about all I can think to do.

Thanks JanetElaine for that kind and very thoughtful initiative!

 

[avecesaria]

Anyone from Eastern Europe knows that Varna is not a good place to go missing in :no:

 

[adeedra]

It would be good to know if it was a German or a Bulgarian touring-coach company. IMHO as a german u are more comfort with your compatriots. So if it was a German company I don't think he feels safer by ride with some private .

Was there any touring-coach company involved? I never stumble on such an information. Wouldn't be that person responsible for finding some safe place for Lars to stay as his time in booked hotel ended?

 

[Satch]

Wow!

Just stumbled on this case! Here is more info. Sorry if posted before:

http://truecrimediva.com/lars-mittank/

My thoughts

1.) Lars was being followed? What is/was known about his background before he visited Bulgaria?
2.) What was the medication that he was taking and what was it supposed to treat?
3.) Any background on the doctor who treated him?
4.) How many people did Lars claim were following him?
5.) Were his friends involved with drugs and drug trafficking? Could they have planted some bad stuff on Lars, making him an easy target?
6.) Why not stay at the airport, where security would be better than flee on your own?
7.) Was his reported ruptured ear drum more serious than thought, where Lars had a worse head injury on top of that, and it make his behavior more erratic?

Satch

 

[Brainy]

Wow!

Just stumbled on this case! Here is more info. Sorry if posted before:

http://truecrimediva.com/lars-mittank/

My thoughts

1.) Lars was being followed? What is/was known about his background before he visited Bulgaria?
2.) What was the medication that he was taking and what was it supposed to treat?
3.) Any background on the doctor who treated him?
4.) How many people did Lars claim were following him?
5.) Were his friends involved with drugs and drug trafficking? Could they have planted some bad stuff on Lars, making him an easy target?
6.) Why not stay at the airport, where security would be better than flee on your own?
7.) Was his reported ruptured ear drum more serious than thought, where Lars had a worse head injury on top of that, and it make his behavior more erratic?

Satch

From what I know he told his mom that four men were following him and they wanted to know "what the tablets" were. According to the article, He later texted her, asking ‘What is Cefuroxime 500?’

Cefuroxime is an antibiotic. It’s not odd for a doctor to prescribe an antibiotic after an ear bleed related to a head injury. I worked with this man once who did have an ear bleed related to his stroke (he fell as a result of a stroke). They did head MRIs later and discovered that he had increased bleeding in his inner ear. Not surprisingly, he had also started complaining of severe headaches, had episodic confusion and wouldn’t talk much. Every time I read about Lars’ symptoms and how he behaved shortly before he disappeared, & it just screams to me, “head injury!”.

There is no information available about the doctor who saw Lars.


To answer question #6, if he truly did have a head injury then we can stop talking about rational explanations altogether. People with head injury oftentimes may have bizarre behaviors that aren’t rational, logical or coherent. Their behavior reflects their brain damage not what would be the best thing to do in given situation.


I don’t personally think he had a ruptured ear drum. People with ruptured eardrums don’t develop confusion, psychotic-like behavior or paranoia.


Saw a comment in a forum not that long ago and one of the commenters who claimed to have known Lars described him in very crude terms, basically stating that they weren’t surprised that Lars got the crap beat out of him in a fight (fight with tourists over a soccer game?) because he had a dirty mouth. I don’t know if the commenter in fact knew Lars but there is the fact that he was in a fight. It’s possible that he sustained a head injury. Sometimes injury may not be so obvious until one starts having some strange behavioral/cognitive manifestations. I find it completely plausible that a serious injury might have been overlooked in an otherwise healthy looking younger male that didn’t have any symptoms at first.

 

[BethAnn777]

Bumping up for Lars.

 

[Vail]

I currently live in the Balkans and have been talking about this case with my DH who is Croatian. Our thoughts are that the core of the story is closest to the truth.

They chose Golden sands for the party scene, almost absolutely - there are far more popular, safe a "posh" places Germans usually go (we must rescue many of them every year getting lost on hikes). I think they had been partying, got into an altercation with the futbol fans, and later that night they caught up with him and he was hit hard on the head - we do know at least he absolutely had a ruptured eardrum, but any other excuse like he maybe hallucinated from the antibiotics is just BS to make sure they don't look bad or negligent or an unsafe place to vacation (it is, I would never recommend it). All it takes is a very hard slap with an open palm to the side of the head to rupture an eardrum. I don't think they were "paid"- how would Lars even know that? It is likely the same guys or their friends, and I wouldn't be surprised if a girl is part of that problem. This kind of thing is actually not uncommon especially between rival clubs (we have riot police out every world cup because of the fights here) Nontheless,I think this altercation happened and lead to his injury which lead to his subsequent physical deterioration. When you are traveling (and partying) there is already stress like sleeplessness, not eating well, etc and now he is injured and abandoned by his friends. You do absolutely hear rumors about being killed or kidnapped for all sorts of reasons in this region, and that may have made him paranoid. His scaling the fence at the airport is what keeps me coming back to this theory - as Elainara said, it seems he was trying to get out of there and onto the freeway. When I asked my DH he said without hesitation that there is no reason to doubt the hooligans hurt him seriously and waited to "teach him a lesson"while he was separated from his friends. This may have made him fearful, and the only reason we could find for running out of an airport and scaling a fence. Consider if Lars was afraid they wouldn't let him leave the country and he thought he was involved in some conspiracy. He left his phone - could someone have taken it and this flipped him out? It seems we don't have a straight story of what happened in the doctors. I don't know if it is as involved as the onset of mental illness, or a side effect of his injury, but I do think he could be out there somewhere and that the Bulgarian police are not going to be the ones to solve it - if this poor mother wants Lars found, she must get the German authority to go and do their own search.

 

[dotr]

Crisp video.
Aug 27 2017
[video=youtube;U1Ay3GXx6y4]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1Ay3GXx6y4[/video]