CANADA Canada - Michael Dunahee, 4, Victoria, BC, 24 March 1991

[EPeel]

I don't think there is a public washroom.

 

[docwho3]

There was a parking lot nearby. Although there were NO eyewitnesses its believed someone drove off with him.

Yes, that makes sense but we still have to get the child close to the adult (standing within three feet) before he can be picked up and carted to the car or pulled by the hand to the car. And then you have to have this happen when no one else sees it. (I can think of many odd ways to obscure the pick up but I don't want to post them all here. No need to educate the bad guys who may read posts too.) Lets just say it is safer to obscure the pick up. But no matter how it is done the child must come close enough to be picked up at some point.

If someone sees but does not think anything of what they saw then you are also fighting memory for later when the alarm is raised. People may say they remember a man or woman dragging off a young boy who was throwing a fit and didn't want to go or who was crying. That's why one might want to obscure what was happening. That would mean the event had some planning put into it. Someone might have went looking for a child to grab. If that was the case I wanted to know if someone had stalked and picked out a target from previous time the boy was there or if the plan was made to aid in just grabbing a random boy that happened to be available at the time. I am reading in posts here that there were no eyewitnesses. There were quite a few eyes there to have seen things but yet we are asked to believe they did not see. That is possible but I asked questions in case there were eyewitnesses who just did not realize what they saw. I wonder if the right questions were asked.

When a child disappears people might ask if anyone remembered seeing a child hauled off crying to the car. Yet I wonder if any of the other possible obscuring methods were asked about? By now only someone with actual case notes would be likely to know.

 

[PonderingThings]

When Michael disappeared there were lots of people milling about. Lots of people were using the park that day. No one saw a distressed child.

Although there could have been some kind of subterfuge the reality is probably the most simple. It could be as easy as someone saying "I left poochy in my truck/car guess I should go let her out" and Michael running over to the indicated truck/car to see pouchy.

Or a woman saying to Michael "I brought cake to the picnic, want to help me bring it from the car?"

There is no information as to who abducted Michael. It could be a man, or a woman, an old person, or a teenager. Whoever it was they did not set off any "alarm bells" for the people that were in the area.

Its my understanding that within 20 minutes of his disappearance the news station had already broadcasted an alert on TV. The word spread quickly. Still no Michael.

Police have had over 11,000 tips and no prime suspect has emerged.

For more information about how easy it is to spirit a child away here is a report of the abduction of Morgan Nick. The two abductions are very similiar. No one knows for sure if it was the man in the sketch that abducted Morgan. There has been no trace of Morgan either.
http://www.ardemgaz.com/prev/nick/part5.asp

 

[docwho3]

When Michael disappeared there were lots of people milling about. Lots of people were using the park that day. No one saw a distressed child.
Although there could have been some kind of subterfuge the reality is probably the most simple. It could be as easy as someone saying "I left poochy in my truck/car guess I should go let her out" and Michael running over to the indicated truck/car to see pouchy.

Or a woman saying to Michael "I brought cake to the picnic, want to help me bring it from the car?" . . .

Certainly possible but then you still may have someone remember seeing the child accompany her or him to the car. Yes it could certainly have been the way it was done but since traditional ways of looking at how he was taken have not borne fruit I thought it good to ask what other things were seen that might help, to look at other possible styles of abduction.

. . .There is no information as to who abducted Michael. It could be a man, or a woman, an old person, or a teenager. Whoever it was they did not set off any "alarm bells" for the people that were in the area. . .

Another good reason to ask questions different than normal. No one wants to be guilty of asking wild questions in the beginning when it seems unnecessary but when a case has gone cold and so much time has gone by I think it is worth looking silly to ask questions and perhaps bring a fresh approach to the problem.

. . .Its my understanding that within 20 minutes of his disappearance the news station had already broadcasted an alert on TV. The word spread quickly. Still no Michael. . .

Was a picture of the child on the air that soon or just a written or spoken description?

 

[PonderingThings]

I don't know about the photo accompanied the broadcast. Perhaps EPeel could say as they live in the area.

The abduction did electrify the community. Word spread VERY quickly.

Vancouver island wasn't completely developed then, and isn't today. There is still a lot of remote, very forrested areas. Some cabins are only accessible by boat. Its not outside of the realm of possibility that Michael was taken to one of these remote areas.

 

[CyberLaw]

I remember reading somewhere of an attempted abduction in the US just after Micheael was kidnapped.

The details are a bit vague, but the kidnapping attempt was not successful and it was an 7 year old girl. She reported that she "may have seen" a young child who resembled Michael in the car.

In hindsight a person can blame the parents, but trust me no one would ever come close to the amount of guilt and blame they feel.

Children can be kidnapped and used in a horrible way. Transported to Europe, used in movies etc.

In 2003, there was only 3 reports of a "stranger" abduction in all of Canada. Also in 2003, there were only 39 reports of a "known or unknown" stranger abduction. This is in a population of 30 million.

This abduction tore my heart out, I remember the picture of Michael in the subway.

Still to this day........

 

[SadieJane]

Last week it was announced that a $100,000 reward is being offered in Michael's case. See article here: http://www.vicnews.com/portals-code/list.cgi?paper=36&cat=23&id=617189&more=

On Monday police said the reward generated more than 80 tips from the public over the weekend. As of Monday morning, 25 of those had been discounted and dozens more were being investigated
"The fear on Friday was that we'd get a bunch of crank calls, but that hasn't happened," Battershill said. "Some of them were new and some related to previous information."
The tips, some of which came from "farther afield" than Vancouver Island, include information about children that suspiciously arrived in families at the age of four as well as accounts of dangerous pedophiles alleged to have been in the community at the time of Michael's disappearance.

It's so great that the police are still working on this and new tips are coming in! Hopefully one tip will lead to Michael's recovering.

 

[Alta]

For the first time in a long time, Victoria police say they are "encouraged" and actively investigating about 10 solid tips from an avalanche of 550 into the disappearance of Michael Dunahee.

While they aren't divulging details, team commander Det.-Sgt. Al Cochrane said part of the investigation will likely include sending two Victoria detectives to a B.C. town.

In one tip, police were provided the first names of a couple with a small child, around the same age as Michael. The family was reported living in a B.C. town shortly after March 24, 1991, when Michael, then four years old, went missing from a playground at the old Blanshard Elementary School (now University Canada West).

More at link

http://snipurl.com/u84r

 

[bykerladi]

Wouldn't it be perfect if he were still alive? That would be so awsome! I hope LE gets to the bottom of this mystery.

 

[jilly]

I don't know why they didn't offer this reward a long time ago. I mean, they managed to pay the same amount of money to Clifford Olsen to find the children he murdered. Granted it was for 10 children but it was given to help out the parents.

It would be an absolute miracle if they found this boy!

 

[Rle7]

Sixteen years after he went missing, police are still chasing leads into the disappearance of Michael Dunahee.

Dunahee remains one the most high-profile missing children in Canadian history, his case spawning more than 1,000 tips from across the world.
On March 24, 1991, the then four-year-old went missing from a playground at Blanshard School (now University Canada West) on Kings near Quadra roads. Victoria police have remained stymied.

"We have continued to make the investigation one of our priorities for unsolved major cases," said police Insp. Les Sylven. "Several of the tips we're actively looking at are not on Vancouver Island."

The department offered a $100,000 reward for information as the case passed the 15-year mark last year. The force was deluged by more than 550 tips.

Police still have about 100 tips to examine and are focused in two areas, said Sylvan.

http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/story.html?id=68440106-e2f4-4672-999a-9547b8c12849&k=71547

 

[Lady Spencer]

More theories:

http://eyespybc.tripod.com/darksideonlinetabloid/id1.html

I have heard these rumors for years. Also I very much doubt that the city is the "satanic cult capital of the world".

This person presents some "evidence" that backs up the theory. Unfortunately the website is down and only the cached copy is available (for now)

http://72.14.203.104/search?q=cache...anweb.html+michael+dunahee&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=4

Neither one of these websites are "proof" of anything, except perhaps unsubstantiated speculation.


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I live near Victoria BC, but use to live there while studying Nursing.
I love horoscopes, tarot etc...but was warned not have that done in Victoria, because there are some real dark nasty folk that can mess with your head there. (from other students I learned this)
I did meet a really really nice lady that was working with the Catholic Church to expose people that were involved in Satanic stuff etc, and some how helped with that book Michelle Remembers.
After knowing all about that kinda of stuff going on over on the Island...from Black Creek, all the way to Victoria...I would not doubt anything.
My first thoughts were that little Michael had been nabbed for something sinister like that. (cute, blonde, innocent). Apparently Doctors, nurses and cops have been in satanic cults.
My Dad had a theory that he was wisked away by some sultan in a foreign country. Many of our airports were easy to land at...not too much checking etc. Vancouver South airport use to have foriegn planes land there, and you would see odd exchanges going on.
I have seen Mrs. Dunahee on TV recently, and my hat and love goes out to her. It would be absolutely horrible to lose your child, and without a trace....or funeral etc. This lady has had no closure at all.

 

[anthrobones]

Michael Wayne Dunahee
Missing since March 24, 1991 from Victoria, British Columbia Canada
Classification: Non-Family Abduction

Vital Statistics Date Of Birth: May 12, 1986
Age at Time of Disappearance: 4 years old
Height and Weight at Time of Disappearance: 3'0; 51 pounds
Distinguishing Characteristics: White male. Blonde straight hair; blue eyes.
Dentals: Dental X-rays not available
Clothing: Multi colored rugby pants, white ninja turtles t-shirt,blue cloth hooded jacket with a red zipper and cuffs, blue canvas shoes with red and orange trim.

Circumstances of Disappearance
Dunahee was last seen at approximately 12:00 PM on March 24, 1991. He was in a school playground in Victoria, British Columbia at the time. Dunahee's mother was playing ball in an adjoining field and his father was watching from a side field at the time. No one saw Dunahee vanish. Foul play is suspected in this case. Extensive searches revealed little in the way of evidence as to Dunahee's whereabouts.
Since Michael's disappearance, there have been alleged sightings of him in the Southern New Jersey/Pennsylvania/Delaware tri-state area. Michael was reportedly seen in the company of a black male, described as 5-foot-10, about 160-180 pounds, with a pockmarked face. The last possible sighting of Michael Dunahee occurred on Wednesday, June 19, when a black male fitting the above description allegedly attempted to abduct a 7-year-old girl in Berlin Borough, New Jersey. She and a companion both described a little boy in the back seat of the man's car as resembling Michael Dunahee. However, authorities have not positively confirmed any of the sightings, either of Dunahee or his possible abductor.
http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/148dmbc.html

 

[meggilyweggily]

I have heard the police discounted the New Jersey sighting.

 

[emma l]

A huge bump for Michael.x

 

[EdinburghLass]

One of the most famous missing-person cases in Canadian history literally sits on the corner of a desk at the Victoria Police Department, where every year around this time it is hit by a flurry of tips that, sadly, have gone nowhere.

A lone investigator, Det.-Sgt. Al Cochrane, works on his own time to track down as many leads as he can before the process repeats itself and the phone calls and letters on the anniversary of the disappearance of Michael Dunahee come flooding in again.

http://www.canada.com/victoriatimes...=72c5596e-69d9-4173-bfc8-75fc1816daa9&k=12162

More at link

 

[luckyducky]

Michael Dunahee vanished the day before my daughter was born. Every year as it nears her birthday I remember Michael and how hard it must be for his family to not know what happened to their little boy. We live not far from Victoria and I happened to find this in our morning paper- I do hope someday they can have closure.
http://www.timescolonist.com/Dunahee+case+surfaces+hard+evidence/1150319/story.html

 

[IntriguedMind]

I read something in the news this week about a possible link to a convicted? or confessed child killer but now see it say's its been dismissed.
I wish there was closure for this case

 

[Sporky]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Dunahee

More info here.

 

[Questions]

Hello I am new here. I have read all your comments and arguments back and forth on this Dunahee Case. I found this cbc news archive story that aired in 1991 after Dunahee went missing, I thought you all would like to see it. What is important with this news story is it is fresh from 1991 after it all happened. Over years stories can change, peoples memories can fade, people that may have been at the park, talk to others that were at the park, witnesses can get mixed up and influenced by other potential witnesses.

http://archives.cbc.ca/society/crime_justice/clips/17224/