CA CA - Michael Negrete, 18, Los Angeles, 10 Dec 1999

[88keys]

Why do you think this is key? By the way, I believe witnesses said somebody matching his description walked out through the front door alone around 4:30AM. Also, I've read other people mention reports about the front desk camera capturing him on video leaving the dorm by himself around 4:30AM, but I have not seen the news reports myself.

Thank you for that info, especially the temperature. Maybe "key" wasn't the right word, but the shoes kept bugging me.

To me, if he were barefoot, or even wearing slippers, he clearly didn't plan to go far. Maybe I'm thinking like a woman and not a man, but I know I would put on slippers for a quick trip outside, like to grab the mail or take out the trash or something. Even in the winter, I might only wear flip flops, if I'm just going out for a few seconds.

If I were going farther, like walking down the street, I would put on real shoes. I don't really think Michael left for a hook-up; surely he would have put on actual shoes. I guess he could have been lured away or forced away, but I think the odds of someone being on the prowl for an anonymous victim at a college dorm at 4:00am just seem really really slim. Is the UCLA campus off by itself, where most of the traffic would be from people actually coming and going to the university? Or is it the middle of town, where people drive through it on their way to other places? Is it easily accessible to the general public?

My gut says some kind of accident. That does beg the question of where the body is, though. I wish we could see exactly what the construction zone outside the dorm looked like. Maybe he fell down a hole or something.

 

[Rose_Red]

Is the UCLA campus off by itself, where most of the traffic would be from people actually coming and going to the university? Or is it the middle of town, where people drive through it on their way to other places? Is it easily accessible to the general public?

It is in the middle of town. There are many people that pass by the university on their way to another location. Traffic around the school is usually heavy, and a lot of it is not from actual students. There are also a lot of shops around the school and other places of business people visit.

The construction accident is a popular theory, and I could believe it, but why was he going outside at that hour to begin with is what I am wondering. I would think that the dogs would be put to work searching the construction area and so would the search groups that were formed, since it is such a popular theory. Some people mention a cover up by UCLA if this did indeed happen, but that is hard for ME to believe.

 

[Essbee]

It is in the "middle of town", but I disagree somewhat. I don't think that people drive thru the campus proper (where the dorms are) unless they want to go onto campus.

 

[UCLAEigenguy]

Could the weird scent trail have been caused by someone dragging a body? On another board, I heard that it was kind of zig-zagging, and way off of the sidewalk. Maybe someone was carrying or dragging him and was trying to stay in dark areas where they wouldn't be seen.

That is what it might imply. I feel like that would be so risky for a suspect to do that, but it makes sense. Also, the trail was entirely uphill. The scent trail has been pretty much invalidated unfortunately. The zigzag would be consistent with trying to hide, and going uphill may have been easier to conceal than going directly to Gayley Dr which may have more student traffic compared to Sunset which would likely be deserted.

To me, the key is the shoes. Can anyone confirm for sure if he was wearing shoes or not? And if he was, were they flip-flops or were they house shoes/slippers? Also, how cold is it in early December in LA? I can't imagine it gets that cold (but I'm from the Midwest, so my idea of cold is probably different).

I believe I read somewhere that they were close-toed shoes that were slip on, so kind of like a slipper but more of a shoe.

I think it is possible, but not probable. The distance from the dorm and where dog scent ended was nearly a mile, about a 16 minute walking distance (according to Google Maps). That is pretty far to drag a body down in a public arena that has a high population, why not just leave the body and run? I think they should have used cadaver dogs as well as dogs to follow his scent. They may have, but I don't know the details on that.

The trail taken would not have necessarily been "public". It went through a small wooded area and areas that would have been dark and deserted at that time.

His only pair of shoes were left in his dorm. It is speculated that he was wearing some type of slippers (or a type of shoe one would wear indoors). On December 10th, 1999, the closest available weather station to Los Angeles, CA (LOS ANGELES DOWNTOWN USC CAMP, CA), reported the following conditions:
High Temp: 63F
Low Temp: 46F
Average Temp: 54.5F
Dewpoint: 39.3F
Wind Speed: 2.7 Knots

You may not think this is cold, but this is about as cold as it gets in Southern California (I believe Michael Negrete was from San Diego).

To me, the weather and the choice of shoes suggests again that he did not mean to be gone long. Besides, even when it is "freezing" outside, I still wear shorts, and a light shirt.

My gut says some kind of accident. That does beg the question of where the body is, though. I wish we could see exactly what the construction zone outside the dorm looked like. Maybe he fell down a hole or something.

This would help immensely. I haven't been able to locate pics of Dykstra Hall during this time. He could have been hit by a drunk driver on a campus street and dumped, or the scent trail could be correct (ending at Sunset/Bellagio) and he could have been hit by a car there and dumped. To me, it seems unlikely, but stranger things have happened.

It is in the middle of town. There are many people that pass by the university on their way to another location. Traffic around the school is usually heavy, and a lot of it is not from actual students. There are also a lot of shops around the school and other places of business people visit.

Not at 4:30am. I have left campus a few times around that time and the campus is very eery and still. There is nobody out. There are no cars on the street. It is hard to believe that there is ever any silence in LA and UCLA, but it was downright scary at that time. It is unlikely that once he left the dorm anyone saw him. Inside is a different story due to finals.

The construction accident is a popular theory, and I could believe it, but why was he going outside at that hour to begin with is what I am wondering. I would think that the dogs would be put to work searching the construction area and so would the search groups that were formed, since it is such a popular theory. Some people mention a cover up by UCLA if this did indeed happen, but that is hard for ME to believe.

It would have likely involved the game he was playing. At least one other person on his floor was playing the same game. Unless he was meeting someone and trying to hide it, I think it was related to the game. There has been no info on what the game was, or who was playing it unfortunately. He could have left not realizing how late it was to meet a fellow player, or visiting another night owl. The dogs did search the construction area and found nothing, but I don't put much stock into the dogs... look at the scent trail theory being dismissed. If there was a coverup, it probably wasn't on UCLA's end. Nobody may have noticed anything strange if say a hole collapsed on him.

It is in the "middle of town", but I disagree somewhat. I don't think that people drive thru the campus proper (where the dorms are) unless they want to go onto campus.

Correct, and the city itself is dead at that time of the morning.

 

[helpful]

I remember seeing Michael's case on Unsolved Mysteries. So strange and scary.

I'm not that long out of college. I attended a university in one of the highest-crime areas in the US, and the area around campus was much more dangerous than the part of LA where UCLA is located. I would have thought NOTHING of wandering around campus alone for no real reason late at night. Sometimes, I just needed some fresh air or a break from studying. On a few occasions, I'd feel like a snack but the vending machines in my dorm didn't have anything I liked, so I'd need to go elsewhere. I often would leave wearing clothing that wasn't warm enough for lengthy excursions, and I almost NEVER brought a wallet or my room keys. We didn't have security cameras, either, so wandering around after dark was really not a good idea.

I also lived in Los Angeles previously and the Westwood area (where UCLA is) is totally different than the rest of the city. I always thought that the campus feels really removed from Los Angeles proper. Perhaps it's this feeling of isolation that made Michael feel okay about walking around late at night.

I'm not sure what the keyed entry technology was like at UCLA in the early 90s, but at my school in the mid 00s, you couldn't use your key card to enter any dorms other than the one you resided in after 12:30 AM. If such a policy existed at UCLA at the time, that would limit places Michael might have been going.

 

[UCLAEigenguy]

The UCLA campus is very safe but since the dorm area was so wooded back then I wouldn't think to walk by myself that late, but maybe he did that.

I think the dorms used standard keys back then, which were replaced with computerized keys and student id access shortly after. At least that is what articles suggest. They never mention tracing his student id or room key.

 

[neverletgo]

:bump:

Bumping for Mike . . . it's coming up on 13 years since he disappeared. Where is Mike Negrete?

 

[deca]

The UCLA campus is very safe but since the dorm area was so wooded back then I wouldn't think to walk by myself that late, but maybe he did that.

I think the dorms used standard keys back then, which were replaced with computerized keys and student id access shortly after. At least that is what articles suggest. They never mention tracing his student id or room key.

I was attending school and living in Westwood in 99 and 2000. Some of my opinions/observations:

-I think my friend who lived in the dorms around that time had a card to access at least the main building. Not sure if ALL the dorms had them at that point, though.

-At 4:30 it is pretty quiet, like some others have posted- but about 5 am it starts perking back up. My roomies would get up and run to the student fitness center around that time. Also- around finals week- certain areas (some of the libraries) would be open 24 hours. Perhaps the coffee places as well?

-Around these years there was some crime in the area. There was a serial rapist on the loose, as well as the infamous "Panty Snatcher". There were also rumors of muggings, etc. It didn't seem to fase most of the male student body, though. I agree with UCLAEigenguy that in general the campus was pretty safe.

-Although UCLA is in the middle of a city, the dorms are somewhat isolated. If he wanted food, Westwood is a good walk away (10-15 min I would say). I am not sure if any closer student store type places were open at that time.

-The dorms are in a wooded type area but it is a groomed wooded area with a regular landscaping area. So if MN was in that area, he would have been found.

I have two theories (maybe 3)- in no order
1. accident wherein he falls into some construction pit or the like and is undiscovered.
2. he won a bet from or wanted to talk to another gamer. Something bad happens with this person.
3. He took off owing to the stress of attending school. I doubt this one.

 

[Rilke]

Bumping for Michael.

 

[DrDMike]

Supposedly the police are investigating his case as a homicide.

 

[Tink56]

Does anyone know what Micheal's major at UCLA was? I found a guy with the same name, who looks very similar to him, but it states that he went to MIT. I do not want to put the link up for this guy yet, but the resemblance is freaky.

Michael's major was music. He was an very accomplished trumpet player. There was talk at one time that a stroke is a possibility for someone who plays this instrument a great deal.

It make no sense.

My thoughts and concern, as always, for his family. A resolution is the only thing the desire, IMO.

 

[deca]

I wonder why they are investigating this as a homicide and if they have any leads? It was always portrayed to the public as if he vanished into thin air.
Right around this time (maybe the next year?) another student went missing from the other side of campus near sorority row. A week or more later it was found that the student had some sort of nervous breakdown and walked away, not telling anyone. IIRC. Not saying Michael did this at all- just saying that the media kind of portrayed Mike's case the same way.

 

[saboteur]

I think about this case from time to time and wonder what ever happened to Michael. I was a freshman that year too and this story just stayed with me.
If he was barefoot and walked away without his keys or wallet, I'm guessing he was going to meet up with someone for a short time and that person didn't know the campus - that was the closest they could get to UCLA from the 405 without having to navigate the little campus streets, or even having to go down Gayley. But that's just speculation. I just hope his family gets to have closure one day.

 

[coolstorybro]

He was a handsome guy too. I live by UCLA too, but as I was young at the time this happened I don't remember hearing it on the news or anything....what I did find interesting though is that awhile back, someone had posted a MySpace of a guy who was named Michael Negrete and the guy looked EXACTLY like Michael Negrete, just a little bit heavier....was that ever looked into. He looked EXACTLY like him....the similarities were eerie!

 

[neverletgo]

:bump:

This month marked 14 years since Michael disappeared from his dorm at UCLA.

 

[TroyinTX]

A VERY baffling case. Literally it seems he just vanished into thin air.

NO clues at all? Besides the supposed man that was in/around his dorm?


I also wonder why people seem to think he is still alive; if he choose to leave on his own, I would think it would be much better planned instead of leaving without shoes, etc and I cannot believe he would be able to elude his family for so long? Doing what?

I tend to think he left the dorm to grab something (a soda, etc..) or to visit a dorm mate and was abducted. I dunno. Such as strange, strange case that I had not heard of until reading this just today.

 

[ZooSleuth]

I found this case on this list called "10 People Who Vanished Into Thin Air"
http://listverse.com/2013/07/27/10-missing-persons-who-seemingly-vanished-into-thin-air/

After doing a quick google search of his name, I came across a blog from his brother:
http://stevethesoundguy.tumblr.com/...eve-apologies-if-this-is-a-tad-personal-but-i

Anywho, the story is, I lost a brother back in 1999, and I believe that drugs were a critical component that led to his disappearance.

Michael Negrete was a freshman at UCLA when he mysteriously disappeared from his dorm room in the wee hours of December 10th, 1999. He had been playing a computer game with a friend for several hours. The game ended at approximately 4am, at which time he logged off his computer.

At 9:00 am, his roommate woke up and discovered that he was nowhere to be found. He had left behind all of his personal belongings, including his clothes, shoes, wallet, and musical instruments. He has not been seen nor heard from since.

Disappeared. Vanished. Missing.

If you want to read the known information about the story, you can visit: http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/n/negrete_michael.html

What the report doesn’t mention is that Mike’s friends verified that he had been attending raves and experimenting with different drugs, most notably ecstasy, in the weeks before the disappearance. My personal theory is that he was under the influence of ecstasy or some other substance, left the dorm for whatever reason, and was picked up by one of those people your mother warns you about.

 

[UCLAEigenguy]

I found this case on this list called "10 People Who Vanished Into Thin Air"
http://listverse.com/2013/07/27/10-missing-persons-who-seemingly-vanished-into-thin-air/

After doing a quick google search of his name, I came across a blog from his brother:
http://stevethesoundguy.tumblr.com/...eve-apologies-if-this-is-a-tad-personal-but-i

Thanks for this link. It is very weird that there is no mention of this behavior or drug use anywhere except in this blog post. Police usually do this when they don't want to spook someone. It seems info is withheld when someone who knows what happened is paying close attention. Like a friend or hallmate?

 

[KurtieB]

Thanks for this link. It is very weird that there is no mention of this behavior or drug use anywhere except in this blog post. Police usually do this when they don't want to spook someone. It seems info is withheld when someone who knows what happened is paying close attention. Like a friend or hallmate?

It is a shocking additional piece of info. Care to extend your theory - think a fellow raver knows what happened?
E is definitely a powerful drug.

 

[UCLAEigenguy]

It is a shocking additional piece of info. Care to extend your theory - think a fellow raver knows what happened?
E is definitely a powerful drug.

It's hard to say but it explains a few things. (I do still think it could be a construction accident)

If he was under the influence, he wasn't in his right mind to put on his shoes etc. It also makes sense that perhaps he actually did follow the bizarre uphill path and end up at the bus stop. Though I would imagine he would have been hyperthermic at some point if he was high by himself(?).

If he met up with someone to go to a rave, anything could have happened. It makes sense why this is a difficult case because I remember raves being somewhat underground back then and hosted at abandoned warehouses. Who knows. Perhaps more likely is a drug deal gone bad.

Ironically, in a previous post either on this site or on Sitcoms Online (there is Unsolved Mysteries thread) I had mentioned that the only type of party that would be going on at 4am would be... a rave.

But this is a bit weird. Three months seems awfully quick to go from sheltered to using ecstasy and raving. Who/what got him to start? I feel like his friends that knew about his supposed drug use also know more than they are telling.

Aside: I was just on campus today. I have only been gone a year and it is amazing how much has changed in the dorm area. Pretty much everything is built up, very little open space anymore like there was in 1999 (or last year).