Bassett, circa 1977
- Missing Since 04/02/1977
- Missing From Franklin, New Hampshire
- Classification Endangered Missing
- Sex Male
- Race White
- Age 29 years old
- Height and Weight 6'5, 160 - 180 pounds
- Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian male. Blond hair, hazel eyes. Bassett may go by his middle name, Shayne. He has a scar on his leg from a prior hunting accident.
Details of Disappearance
Bassett, a single father, was last known to have been in Franklin, New Hampshire with his nine-month-old son on April 2, 1977. They lived in a house on Salisbury Road which Bassett's parents owned. The next day, the baby was found abandoned in a cardboard box in a stairwell at the Massachusetts State House. There was no sign of the father and he has never been heard from again.
The baby was placed in foster care, and his aunt, Bassett's sister, recognized his photograph when it was published in the newpaper later that month. She and her husband were granted custody, and subsequently adopted the boy. The baby's biological mother, Bassett's third wife, had was in California at this time.
Bassett had previously operated Nature Gardens, a natural food store on Main Street in Penacook, New Hampshire. It was shut down in April 1975 and Bassett was arrested; police believed the store was significant drug distribution point in the local area. He served four months of a one-year sentence for possession of marijuana during the summer of 1976, and he was still on probation when he disappeared. While on a work release job in August of that year, he had said he'd noticed a car following him and he feared for his life.
The circumstances of Bassett's disappearance are unclear, but his family doesn't think he would have left his baby son voluntarily. He also left his five dogs uncared-for, which is uncharacteristic of him; he would always make arrangements for someone to feed them if he had to be gone. His case remains unsolved.
Investigating Agency
- Franklin Police Department 603-934-2535
Source Information
Updated 1 time since October 12, 2004. Last updated June 2, 2023; casefile added.
