CANADA Canada - Marshal Iwaasa, 26, Lethbridge, Alberta, burned truck found in B.C., 17 Nov 2019

[bombardier]

by the way, most recent article I could find, on Dec 18:
LPS continues investigation into missing man - Medicine Hat News
"Lethbridge Police Service is continuing its investigation of missing person, Marshal Iwaasa, after the file was handed over to them by the Pemberton, B.C. RCMP and Calgary Police. [...] “We want to reassure the public that we are actively investigating this and we are working diligently to review the evidence that has been collected from the vehicle located in Pemberton. We are reviewing all of the evidence that has been supplied to us by the RCMP.” "

Wonder if there's any evidence of MI being in Lethbridge vs Pemberton? Or does Lethbridge get the file just because he lived in AB and that's where his last known contact was?

 

[rae100]

by the way, most recent article I could find, on Dec 18:
LPS continues investigation into missing man - Medicine Hat News
"Lethbridge Police Service is continuing its investigation of missing person, Marshal Iwaasa, after the file was handed over to them by the Pemberton, B.C. RCMP and Calgary Police. [...] “We want to reassure the public that we are actively investigating this and we are working diligently to review the evidence that has been collected from the vehicle located in Pemberton. We are reviewing all of the evidence that has been supplied to us by the RCMP.” "

Wonder if there's any evidence of MI being in Lethbridge vs Pemberton? Or does Lethbridge get the file just because he lived in AB and that's where his last known contact was?

Yes, since he was last seen in Lethbridge, that's why the Lethbridge Police took it over.

 

[rae100]

I am a Lethbridge native, and I just returned from the holidays there. After talking to a few cousins that went to highschool with Marshal, they told me he was friends with a kid named Samson Mandefro who was murdered in 2018 (presumably drug related) - you can Google this name to read about it. In my opinion, this could be why none of Marshal's friends have stepped forward to say anything. My cousins are convinced this is drug related foul play, and they knew Marshal and his friends.

 

[dotr]

I am a Lethbridge native, and I just returned from the holidays there. After talking to a few cousins that went to highschool with Marshal, they told me he was friends with a kid named Samson Mandefro who was murdered in 2018 (presumably drug related) - you can Google this name to read about it. In my opinion, this could be why none of Marshal's friends have stepped forward to say anything. My cousins are convinced this is drug related foul play, and they knew Marshal and his friends.

Scary stuff, wonder if there has been a search for Marshal around the same lake?
Missing Lethbridge man found dead in Waterton Lakes National Park
"There was a tragic end in the search for a missing Lethbridge man who hadn’t been seen or heard from in more than two weeks.

Pincher Creek RCMP said Monday the body of 23-year-old Samson Mandefro was found in Upper Waterton Lake on Saturday."
"Mandefro was last seen in Waterton Lakes National Park on Aug. 9 and last heard from on Aug. 10."
Two men charged in connection with shooting; investigation ongoing to locate additional subject | Lethbridge Police Services

 

[Satchie]

I am a Lethbridge native, and I just returned from the holidays there. After talking to a few cousins that went to highschool with Marshal, they told me he was friends with a kid named Samson Mandefro who was murdered in 2018 (presumably drug related) - you can Google this name to read about it. In my opinion, this could be why none of Marshal's friends have stepped forward to say anything. My cousins are convinced this is drug related foul play, and they knew Marshal and his friends.

Do you have any evidence Samson Mandefro was murdered? The stories printed when he was being searched for state "no foul play is suspected".
Pincher Creek RCMP help Lethbridge police search for man reported missing 2 weeks ago

I can't find any follow-up statement that police have turned it into a homicide investigation (which they would be obliged to do if the autopsy and investigation found it was a murder). Police do not conceal a murder from the public, and the media would have been on top of the story if there was anything suspicious.

If there's been no information about the cause of death, that means, to me, it was an accident or suicide, and the family prefer not to share that info.

 

[61Montcalm]

I am a Lethbridge native, and I just returned from the holidays there. After talking to a few cousins that went to highschool with Marshal, they told me he was friends with a kid named Samson Mandefro who was murdered in 2018 (presumably drug related) - you can Google this name to read about it. In my opinion, this could be why none of Marshal's friends have stepped forward to say anything. My cousins are convinced this is drug related foul play, and they knew Marshal and his friends.

Originally I was thinking self harm, but I’m coming round to your point of view. A couple of points are leading me to this conclusion. I’ve just had a look at my Canadian and EU member state passports and the passport number in both appears on every page of the passports. I would imagine this is the case for pretty much all countries. So ripping out the identity parts doesn’t make sense in order to conceal identity. CBSA and RCMP would be able to tell immediately whose passports they were and from what country. Ripping the ID pages out seems to me to be sending a signal to others IMO.
I wonder if there were any foot tracks leading away from the truck? Clothing could have been staged to look like someone fled the burning truck. I wonder if the whole scene wasn’t staged - was Marshal actually present when all this happened? Or was he “taken care of” somewhere else in Alberta or BC? All IMO.

 

[dotr]

Family of missing Calgary man Marshal Iwaasa hosting vigil for his birthday
Dec 31 2019
"The family of a missing Calgary man is hosting a vigil on his 27th birthday to raise awareness of his sudden disappearance in November.

At the time of the year when they usually spend all of their time together celebrating Christmas, New Year’s Day and Marshal Iwaasa’s birthday on Jan. 3, his family is organizing a vigil at his former high school. At 6:30 p.m. on his birthday, his family, friends and community will light candles and share stories about Iwaasa at Winston Churchill High in Lethbridge to spread awareness of his disappearance.

Since Iwaasa went missing on Nov. 17 after leaving his family in Lethbridge to return home to Calgary, his family has been pinning up posters of the 26-year-old at gas stations and businesses across southern Alberta and B.C. The Find Marshal Iwaasa Facebook page has over 8,500 members who are printing out posters to hang in their workplaces or sharing the poster on their own Facebook newsfeed.

“We know that the only way we’ll be able to find Marshal is with everyone’s help so we are hoping to spread the word about him. We will share stories about Marshal so that people know who he is and who they are looking for, the kind of man that he is,” said Iwaasa’s mother, Tammy Johnson."

The vigil is scheduled to take place on Jan. 3 at 6:30 p.m. at Winston Churchill High located at 1605 15 Ave. N in Lethbridge. The family will provide candles for those who attend and will also live-stream the vigil on the Find Marshal Iwaasa Facebook page."

 

[rae100]

Scary stuff, wonder if there has been a search for Marshal around the same lake?
Missing Lethbridge man found dead in Waterton Lakes National Park
"There was a tragic end in the search for a missing Lethbridge man who hadn’t been seen or heard from in more than two weeks.

Pincher Creek RCMP said Monday the body of 23-year-old Samson Mandefro was found in Upper Waterton Lake on Saturday."
"Mandefro was last seen in Waterton Lakes National Park on Aug. 9 and last heard from on Aug. 10."
Two men charged in connection with shooting; investigation ongoing to locate additional subject | Lethbridge Police Services

I don't, this is just what my cousins who went to highschool with them said. I have no clue about it, and it could all just be small town rumors.

 

[dotr]

Jan 2 2020
https://lethbridgenewsnow.com/2020/...-missing-lethbridge-man-being-held-on-friday/
"To help raise awareness about the situation, a candlelit vigil will take place on Friday, January 3 at Winston Churchill High School (1605 15 Avenue North) in Lethbridge at 6:30 p.m.


January 3 also happens to be Iwassa’s 27th birthday. Candles will be provided by the family and according to a notice on the FIND MARSHAL IWAASA Facebook page, the family plans on live streaming the vigil for anyone who is unable to attend.

Since launching, the Facebook page has amassed over 8,600 members. Missing posters have been placed around various communities as the search for Iwaasa continues.

Iwaasa is described as 5-foot-11, around 170 pounds with brown eyes, shoulder-length brown hair that is usually worn tied back, and a mustache. When he was last seen, he was wearing a green hoodie, grey toque, red hi-top shoes, and black pants."

 

[AutumnFalls]

true, this could be a getting rid of all possessions and starting a new life deal .. id still think if you're voluntarily absconding you'd want to keep your vehicle though i'm a BC native and it's very forest dominated, cold and snowy currently, couldn't go far on foot, no hitchhiking reported... i'm still leaning towards foul play but if this was voluntary I don't have great hope in MI still being with us.

I doubt that he drove his car all the way out there as a way to start a new life unless he had arranged another vehicle or some way out of the woods.

 

[Satchie]

I doubt that he drove his car all the way out there as a way to start a new life unless he had arranged another vehicle or some way out of the woods.

I agree, it's not the right season to abandon your vehicle, if you intend to survive. And if you didn't intend to survive, why bother driving all that way? That is a long, tedious drive over several mountain ranges, and in winter, it's basically 1000 kms of nothing but places to disappear.

 

[MistyWaters]

I missed this, a report below published prior to the ID of the truck later known to belong to MI. It was found near a lake. Due to the season, I wonder if the water has been searched?

I feel great empathy for MI’s family upon being confronted with the sudden shock and agony of learning of his mysterious disappearance, in addition to the fact that he had fabricated certain details of his life in Calgary. I don’t know but it would seem foul play might be preferable than to think MI deliberately was solely responsible for his disappearance without any outside involvement.

“Pemberton RCMP is investigating a burnt-out vehicle that was found at a backcountry hut on the shores of Long Lake this weekend, police said in a release.

At about 1 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 24, police were informed of the abandoned, charred pickup found at the trailhead near the Brain Waddington Hut.

James Starke, writing on the South Coast Touring Facebook group, said the truck "smelt very fresh" when he discovered it with a group of friends alongside "possessions thrown all over the area," including two passports, three smashed cellphones, a destroyed laptop, ID cards, toiletry bags and clothing.

"It felt like a crime scene and had a very eerie feeling," he wrote.

Police have recovered some of the items in the hopes that they may help identify the truck's owner, "however, given its condition, location and time of year [that] will prove challenging," the release went on.

Couple leads Pemberton police on chase after stealing delivery van

 

[AutumnFalls]

@MistyWaters, It's very sad for the family, no matter what happened. In my mind, there are three possibilities.

1. Marshal wanted to leave his life, and made arrangements either by dumping the truck in the woods himself and having a ride out of there, or by leaving it elsewhere where it was consequently stolen and dumped in the woods.

2. Marshal drove out to the woods himself because he wasn't in his right mind due to drugs, mental illness etc. He was disoriented and when the truck was on fire he fled, perhaps on fire himself.

3. Marshal met with foul play on his trip back from Lethbridge and his truck was dumped in the woods by his attacker(s).

I'm leaning more towards number two because of the information about his schooling and the fact that he's at the right age for mental illness to hit.

 

[MistyWaters]

@MistyWaters, It's very sad for the family, no matter what happened. In my mind, there are three possibilities.

1. Marshal wanted to leave his life, and made arrangements either by dumping the truck in the woods himself and having a ride out of there, or by leaving it elsewhere where it was consequently stolen and dumped in the woods.

2. Marshal drove out to the woods himself because he wasn't in his right mind due to drugs, mental illness etc. He was disoriented and when the truck was on fire he fled, perhaps on fire himself.

3. Marshal met with foul play on his trip back from Lethbridge and his truck was dumped in the woods by his attacker(s).

I'm leaning more towards number two because of the information about his schooling and the fact that he's at the right age for mental illness to hit.

An remotely possible #4 but it has happened before - Marshal has taken on the identity of another person, the driver of a 2nd vehicle who’s body hasn’t been discovered.

But I agree #2 is likely, unfortunately.

 

[Jamtartz]

I'm beginning to think this case is drug related too.

 

[rae100]

@MistyWaters, It's very sad for the family, no matter what happened. In my mind, there are three possibilities.

1. Marshal wanted to leave his life, and made arrangements either by dumping the truck in the woods himself and having a ride out of there, or by leaving it elsewhere where it was consequently stolen and dumped in the woods.

2. Marshal drove out to the woods himself because he wasn't in his right mind due to drugs, mental illness etc. He was disoriented and when the truck was on fire he fled, perhaps on fire himself.

3. Marshal met with foul play on his trip back from Lethbridge and his truck was dumped in the woods by his attacker(s).

I'm leaning more towards number two because of the information about his schooling and the fact that he's at the right age for mental illness to hit.

Strongly believe it's either 2, or 3 due to involvement with drug lords.

 

[swedeheart]

interview with marshall's sister on john lordan.

 

[AutumnFalls]

I'm beginning to think this case is drug related too.

It's possible. I know that it's mentioned that he did rig work, and there's a lot of drugs and drinking on the rigs.

 

[bombardier]

interview with marshall's sister on john lordan.

some information from his sister's interview, with time stamps. I bolded the clarifying info I thought was most important.

-Jan 3rd was Marshal's 27th birthday (3:00)
-sister is using past tense when referring to Marshal (5:38)
-Marshal is a gym rat (5:50)
-this is his only sibling (7:30)
-worked a variety of manual labor jobs, stopped to attend school(7:47)
-left on the 17th to see his mother in Lethbridge and supposedly left to return on the same day (9:00)
-left Lethbridge around 10:30-11:00, which is the last sighting (9:40)
-this is Marshal's first time back at school since HS, was in his 2nd year of uni (10:40)
-Marshal was not actively enrolled in uni at the time, sister hasn't found the reason why he left (11:40)
-Marshal is a 'proud person' and it would be hard for him to say that he dropped out (12:40)
-unaware if Marshal had ever returned to Calgary, again no confirmed sightings (14:30)
-Marshal is not likely to pick up a hitchhiker as he is quiet, introverted (15:26)
- the extra phones might be Marshal's old phones that he kept in his truck, would go through cellphones quickly (16:15)
-one phone was confirmed to be Marshal's, police tried to trace it and found there hadn't been phone activity since the beginning of November, but this is apparently not unusual for him (17:58)
-there hasnt been debit/credit card activity since Nov the 15th (19:30)
- the laptop found at the scene hadn't been used for a few years, might be one of those old electronics Marshal kept in his car (20:30)
- the cell phones might have been smashed/broken prior to his disappearance and not broken during the incident (21:00)
-sister thinks he might have been traveling in the truck for work (21:30)
-the smashed video game consoles might not be his (23:17)
-Marshal's apartment was still full of his possessions (23:50)
-Marshal doesn't have any known connections to BC (24:15)
-unknown how the car ignited, no gas cans found, and usually no gas cans kept in the truck (26:35)
- RCMP has done a publicized underwater search (27:12)
- trail of clothing led to the stream? (28:00)
- both passports at the scene were Marshal's, one was expired. Marshal usually kept his passport in the truck. (28:35)
-Lethbridge PD (where he was last seen) is taking charge of the case, but multiple jurisdictions are involved (32:00)
-sister wants to expand awareness of the case into other provinces eg SK (34:45)
-family has an active donation page, found on the facebook page (38:00)

-------------------------
im glad Paige clarified all of this! in some ways I'm leaning less towards foul play but in some ways more??

 

[Innana]

some information from his sister's interview, with time stamps. I bolded the clarifying info I thought was most important.

-Jan 3rd was Marshal's 27th birthday (3:00)
-sister is using past tense when referring to Marshal (5:38)
-Marshal is a gym rat (5:50)
-this is his only sibling (7:30)
-worked a variety of manual labor jobs, stopped to attend school(7:47)
-left on the 17th to see his mother in Lethbridge and supposedly left to return on the same day (9:00)
-left Lethbridge around 10:30-11:00, which is the last sighting (9:40)
-this is Marshal's first time back at school since HS, was in his 2nd year of uni (10:40)
-Marshal was not actively enrolled in uni at the time, sister hasn't found the reason why he left (11:40)
-Marshal is a 'proud person' and it would be hard for him to say that he dropped out (12:40)
-unaware if Marshal had ever returned to Calgary, again no confirmed sightings (14:30)
-Marshal is not likely to pick up a hitchhiker as he is quiet, introverted (15:26)
- the extra phones might be Marshal's old phones that he kept in his truck, would go through cellphones quickly (16:15)
-one phone was confirmed to be Marshal's, police tried to trace it and found there hadn't been phone activity since the beginning of November, but this is apparently not unusual for him (17:58)
-there hasnt been debit/credit card activity since Nov the 15th (19:30)
- the laptop found at the scene hadn't been used for a few years, might be one of those old electronics Marshal kept in his car (20:30)
- the cell phones might have been smashed/broken prior to his disappearance and not broken during the incident (21:00)
-sister thinks he might have been traveling in the truck for work (21:30)
-the smashed video game consoles might not be his (23:17)
-Marshal's apartment was still full of his possessions (23:50)
-Marshal doesn't have any known connections to BC (24:15)
-unknown how the car ignited, no gas cans found, and usually no gas cans kept in the truck (26:35)
- RCMP has done a publicized underwater search (27:12)
- trail of clothing led to the stream? (28:00)
- both passports at the scene were Marshal's, one was expired. Marshal usually kept his passport in the truck. (28:35)
-Lethbridge PD (where he was last seen) is taking charge of the case, but multiple jurisdictions are involved (32:00)
-sister wants to expand awareness of the case into other provinces eg SK (34:45)
-family has an active donation page, found on the facebook page (38:00)

-------------------------
im glad Paige clarified all of this! in some ways I'm leaning less towards foul play but in some ways more??

Good points.

2 things stood out for me also:

his sister mentioned that she and her husband would leave gift cards hidden around his home when they visited. I think last time was only a few months ago(? I’d have to go back and rewatch the above video to confirm this). That they understood how hard it was to be a student and they knew he was struggling financially.

This made me wonder if he was struggling financially more than they knew and, being too proud to ask for help, either turned to illegal means to make money, or became depressed resulting in him choosing to disappear.

The other thing I found odd -wasn’t he enrolled in a tech program at SAIT? Yet his sister mentioned he wasn’t good with technology. Seems like a. Odd program choice then.