Well, like I said with lack of official information I present additional speculation. In summary: In 2020 Feds broke up a large scale multi campus drug ring which included at least 2 defendants from App State campus fraternities. Reading through the testimony and multiple articles you find in some cases the drug dealing was occurring on campuses at least as early as 2016. Drugs included everything from Marijuana to Xanax to Cocaine and beyond. This was a large scale multi year, multi state operation using fraternities to push their drugs. Some of the quantities include purchases of 100o's of lbs. of marijuana, 5 keys of cocaine, 2 a week in some places reporting from as early as 2016 until they were caught and prosecuted. If one does some simple math on the ages of some of the defendants that puts them as potentially students on campus with Martin at the same time and dealing drugs and engaged in fraternity memberships. Take a look.
21 arrested in ‘large scale drug ring’ that funneled more than $1.5M worth of drugs through N.C. colleges
You might also consider, in a previous point I noted two arrests and case numbers for James Martin within days of each other but only one case is ever discussed. The DWI. Now, I am left to speculate that 2nd arrest/case number. Reading further into the story you find immediately after the App State defendants are named, the reporter discusses there is a cooperating witness. Speculation can run wild here. If Martin was such a cooperating witness which I am not proposing, I do not think the police would have searched so diligently for him the first few days but one does wonder how that 2nd arrest may play out once the details are finally released. Conversely, Martin was found to have an ample supply of anti depressant pills and if a legitimate prescriber or a legitimate supplier of samples has not been found well, based on the information contained in the arrest news, we can assume Martin could have been getting them from one of these frat suppliers. Dubious at best but the facts line up and if not coincidence, then something tangible to look at.
If anything, I think the tangent interviews of the fraternity brothers should be readdressed and confirmed with backgrounds run on all of them who gave statements previously.
1. Is it possible Martin is a cooperating witness?
2. Is it possible the comment Martin said to his girlfriend "Nobody can help me" was alluding to his involvement in some way with illegal drug purchases that he couldn't pay back?
3. Conversely, were Martin's fingerprints found on the pill packs or bottles of anti depressants? Additionally, was chemical analysis used to determine the formula and the manufacturer AND chain of custody of the drugs?
We keep hearing Boone police tell us nothing comes of any of this. None of it pans out etc. I just don't accept that. Every factory makes controlled drugs from controlled ingredients and all processes slightly different so that you take a blood pressure pill today and they find it to be poisonous and find additional pills, they can trace that pill based on it's analysis from the manufacturer and the original paperwork with chain of custody. If it wasn't then, it should be followed now and chased down to the end of the Earth to find who signed for it last. They will argue "there were no lot numbers" or "the lot numbers were a dead end" Nope, ask the DEA to analyze it for origination. Easy stuff.
In truth, I think the power of James Martin Roberts case is the fact nothing adds up. We all know there is a missing factor to the story that is not being made public. Whether it be the "entire" contents of the note or something more reality bending like a multi state, multi campus drug ring to run down. Whatever that missing factor is, is why we are here. Nothing adds up in this case. This is just not what it seems. There is something more going on.
Let's do this.
Re-interview the fraternity brothers
Re-interview Martin's room mates
Re-interview Martin's friends
Re-interview the two women who reported him walking outside of town near the Winkler Creek Road / Flannery and Payne Branch crossing. At the very least, re-interview these ladies with zeal because they represent only 3 options. 1. Either they were correct and every home in that area should be the subject of cadaver dog parties. 2. They were wrong, BOTH coincidentally identifying the wrong guy independently of each other at the same location. Making their statements either true and just bad luck (if you believe in coincidences) or conspired. In which case, they should be pressed rigorously. And 3. Purposefully provided an alibi for Martin or someone who wanted Martin spotted someone other than were he really was.
Conversely, I want to talk to the restaurant owner friend of the family who hired Martin during the summer prior to heading back to school.
Why? Because he obviously admired Martin greatly. Went out of his way to tell the ID crew that Martin was mature well beyond his peers. And because Martins mom used the word groomed as in "Martin was being groomed for management" In the history of words the word "groomed" has taken on a much more sinister role in lexicon. I just don't like hearing it when its used to describe what a grown man is doing to an impressionable young man. Might just be a bad choice of words but it does make one wonder about that relationship and should it be scrutinized further.
Anyway, enough speculating for tonight. This would be a wonderful ending should we find Martin left suddenly for protection and remains so protected until the finality of the drug ring prosecutions. However, it could also be a bad ending, in that he had nothing to do with any of that, perhaps just purchased some anti depressants and couldn't pay them back.. We are no closer today than yesterday but one thing I am sure of- nobody believed Martin was suicidal. Nobody close to him. All hints lead to Martin being in something over his head and couldn't be helped with. Again, let's take a step back and ask ourselves.. Does ANYONE just go out on the street and buy antidepressants? I mean do depressed people decide they want to go buy some anti depressants on a corner prior to a mental health professional telling them they needed some? That much just doesn't make any sense and until it does, EVERY mental health professional that was anywhere near Boone or Martins home town should be looked at AND every subsequent drug bust since 2016 with antidepressants seized should be chemically compared to those Martin had. C'mon Boone PD. You have evidence from numerous arrests. Feds have evidence, everyone has evidence now chemically compare other anti depressants to Martins and lets get this chain of custody thing rolling.