OH OH - Brian Shaffer, 27, Columbus, 1 April 2006 - #4

[Ozoner]

Brightan has told me on more than one occasion that when they walk off camera at 1:55 am they scoot back and are then standing under the camera and out of camera view. She then went to the restroom and Brian and Amber stayed outside. Brian was supposed to walk them to their car so he was waiting with Amber. Brightan then came back from the restroom and they few spoke for a minute before saying their goodbyes. When I spoke with Amber I asked if she remembered the conversation her and Brian had and she told me she doesn’t. Neither can recall why Brian waited, but didn’t actually walk them to their car. This small detail actually changes a lot in my head because Brian had to be standing out front of the bar no more than 2 minutes before Clint and Meredith are seen leaving on the escalator.

Where was the parking garage in relation to the UTS? Could Brian have remembered that he was supposed to accompany Brightan and Amber to their car and sought a shortcut through the construction area in order to catch up with them?

I would like to know why Brian was flip flopping as well. My theory is that he saw Clint and Meredith coming and wanted to ditch them after the argument him and Clint had. Plus Brian was having an after party at his apartment that night with friends that were not fans of Clint.

Brian may have entered the construction area in order to ditch Clint and Meredith, but we can't know that. Maybe he was trying to find a shortcut to the parking garage. Maybe he was trying to find the band. Maybe he had to take a leak and didn't want to go into the smelly UTS bathroom. Whatever the reason, it seems extremely likely if not certain that Brian went through the beige door that was just outside of the range of the security camera, and it seems more likely than not that he ultimately entered the construction site.

 

[Looking4Brian]

Are you saying that this statement was made to Clint & Meredith after Brightan & Amber left ? In other words, in that timespan of a minute, a minute and a half Brian re-entered the bar and said this to them? And the minute later they had searched for Brian in the bar, restroom and were already on the escalators leaving ?

Clint and Meredith stated that Brian was out front of the bar and came back in. He supposedly told them he was going to talk to the band before they left. And yes that is basically what would’ve happened with the timeline we now have. It all just doesn’t fit for me.

 

[Looking4Brian]

Where was the parking garage in relation to the UTS? Could Brian have remembered that he was supposed to accompany Brightan and Amber to their car and sought a shortcut through the construction area in order to catch up with them?


Brian may have entered the construction area in order to ditch Clint and Meredith, but we can't know that. Maybe he was trying to find a shortcut to the parking garage. Maybe he was trying to find the band. Maybe he had to take a leak and didn't want to go into the smelly UTS bathroom. Whatever the reason, it seems extremely likely if not certain that Brian went through the beige door that was just outside of the range of the security camera, and it seems more likely than not that he ultimately entered the construction site.

Here is an aerial view of the distance from the Parking Garage to the Gateway complex. He absolutely could’ve went through the construction site and came right out by the garage.

Edit: just a second I have to resize the photo.

 

[Looking4Brian]

Here is an aerial view of the distance from the Parking Garage to the Gateway complex. He absolutely could’ve went through the construction site and came right out by the garage.

Edit: just a second I have to resize the photo.

 

[Old Mozez]

Clint and Meredith stated that Brian was out front of the bar and came back in. He supposedly told them he was going to talk to the band before they left. And yes that is basically what would’ve happened with the timeline we now have. It all just doesn’t fit for me.

It's strange and it doesn't fit the time frame, this is what I know Clint said to the Rita Cosby crew:

And we see some students of mine.(A&B) We sat down next to
them. It was Meredith to my right, then me, and then the two girls and then Brian was doing his
usual thing. And he was talking to those two girls. And I go, yeah, Brian stick around. He has a
tendency to walk away. And probably 10 minutes later, 15 minutes later, I turned to say, Meredith
let‘s go, it was closing time, 2:10, 2:00 and Brian was nowhere to be seen.

Had Brian spoken to them a minute earlier saying he was going to talk to the band he would have been there!? Or did he rush out in stealth mode unseen?
If he did why not just use the escalators then?

 

[Looking4Brian]

It's strange and it doesn't fit the time frame, this is what I know Clint said to the Rita Cosby crew:

And we see some students of mine.(A&B) We sat down next to
them. It was Meredith to my right, then me, and then the two girls and then Brian was doing his
usual thing. And he was talking to those two girls. And I go, yeah, Brian stick around. He has a
tendency to walk away. And probably 10 minutes later, 15 minutes later, I turned to say, Meredith
let‘s go, it was closing time, 2:10, 2:00 and Brian was nowhere to be seen.

Had Brian spoken to them a minute earlier saying he was going to talk to the band he would have been there!? Or did he rush out in stealth mode unseen?
If he did why not just use the escalators then?

I have seen this transcription. Brightan told me almost the same positioning of everyone other than she said Clint and Brian stood. Clint and Meredith were absolutely seen leaving on the escalator at 2:00 am. At 2:01 am Meredith calls Brian from Clint’s phone and said where the hell are you. At 2:09 a.m. Clint and Meredith are seen on camera leaving the parking garage. They were caught on several other cameras in the area as they made their way to the professors house.

 

[Old Mozez]

I have seen this transcription. Brightan told me almost the same positioning of everyone other than she said Clint and Brian stood. Clint and Meredith were absolutely seen leaving on the escalator at 2:00 am. At 2:01 am Meredith calls Brian from Clint’s phone and said where the hell are you. At 2:09 a.m. Clint and Meredith are seen on camera leaving the parking garage. They were caught on several other cameras in the area as they made their way to the professors house.

It's hard to digest that statement is all, because it shuffles things around to a point where the most logic scenario isn't really that logic anymore. Brian didn't have superpowers or cloak abilities. It can be that C&M confuse time & events in the bar, and that Brian said that to them earlier than 1.58-1.59am. So if it's a true statement it might not be an accurate one. Although I need more time to puzzle it out.

 

[Looking4Brian]

It's hard to digest that statement is all, because it shuffles things around to a point where the most logic scenario isn't really that logic anymore. Brian didn't have superpowers or cloak abilities. It can be that C&M confuse time & events in the bar, and that Brian said that to them earlier than 1.58-1.59am. So if it's a true statement it might not be an accurate one. Although I need more time to puzzle it out.

I believe that Brian told them he was going to talk to the band before he walked out front and is seen on cctv speaking to the girls. It’s just my opinion, but it would make Clint’s timing more accurate. It is normal for their timing to be off with the drinks flowing.

 

[Ozoner]

Brian's comments about wanting to talk to the band could have been made while Brightan was in the bathroom; that would have been a natural time for Brian to break free and touch base with Clint and Meredith.
-
It's possible that Brian did intend to chat with the band members; that could explain why he didn't accompany Amber and Brightan to their vehicle (not that any explanation is needed considering that everybody was half in the bag).

 

[Looking4Brian]

Brian's comments about wanting to talk to the band could have been made while Brightan was in the bathroom; that would have been a natural time for Brian to break free and touch base with Clint and Meredith.
-
It's possible that Brian did intend to chat with the band members; that could explain why he didn't accompany Amber and Brightan to their vehicle (not that any explanation is needed considering that everybody was half in the bag).

Based on reports I have it is also very likely that the band was leaving through the beige door leading to the exit and construction area at that time. I will say that Amber told me Brian waited out there with her while Brightan was in the restroom.

 

[itsrak]

So, Brian was planning to have some friends over to his apt. that early morn. Amber and Brightan not included. Clint and Meredith not included (I guess that is why Brian didn't want them dropping him off at his apt?). So, is it known who was invited? Presumably, one or more of those invitees would have either shown up at the apt, or called Brian to confirm (and then perhaps opted out when Brian's phone went straight to VM so no confirmation that after-party was on). Did CPD follow-up with the invitees to get their input and to clear them?

I'd think that if in fact an after-party had been planned, whatever happened to Brian took place prior to the planned after-party, and is the reason Brian failed to be there. I can't imagine the after-party was planned for any later than 3am or so, so whatever happened to Brian must have taken place between 1:59am and 3am or so...

And if at 2am this after-party was soon to happen, why would Brian have turned his phone off?! He wouldn't have - he'd have kept it on in case any after-party invitees might have called. Suggests to me that he likely never turned his phone off, that the reason his phone started going straight to VM around 2am (per Clint/Meredith, who called him shortly after 2am, right?) is that that is when something happened to him that resulted in his phone signal getting blocked and making it seem like he'd turned his phone off....

 

[Looking4Brian]

So, Brian was planning to have some friends over to his apt. that early morn. Amber and Brightan not included. Clint and Meredith not included. So, is it known who was invited? Presumably, one or more of those invitees would have either shown up at the apt, or called Brian to confirm and then opted out when Brian's phone went straight to VM so no confirmation that after-party was on. Did CPD follow-up with the invitees to clear them?

Yes Brian was having a get together for some of his very close friends at his apartment. Sort of an after party to catch up since these people had not seen Brian much with medical school and his travels. 2 of these people have been lifelong friends almost family to Brian. I speak to one of them on a regular basis. Brian was supposed to call when he got to his apartment and these individuals were going to come to his apartment then. Brian didn’t call so they didn’t go over. They just assumed Brian made other plans and changed his mind.

 

[itsrak]

Yes Brian was having a get together for some of his very close friends at his apartment. Sort of an after party to catch up since these people had not seen Brian much with medical school and his travels. 2 of these people have been lifelong friends almost family to Brian. I speak to one of them on a regular basis. Brian was supposed to call when he got to his apartment and these individuals were going to come to his apartment then. Brian didn’t call so they didn’t go over. They just assumed Brian made other plans and changed his mind.

So Brian was supposed to call the invitees to confirm. It would seem likely that'd he'd have made those calls right around the time he was ready to depart the UTS, so as soon as he got away from Clint/Meredith (who were not invited). In my view, this suggests that whatever happened to Brian happened within moments after he was last seen around 2am, and thus quite possibly before he managed to exit the Gateway complex (which Gateway surveillance cam video suggests he did not, and which neighborhood surveillance video also provided no evidence he did).

So, to me, both the phone suddenly going straight to VM, and Brian's having failed to make calls to invitees, hint that Brian may have, very soon after 2am, become unable to make calls, and his phone may have become not able to link up with a cell tower. Scenario A.

Or, he may have decided to blow everyone off and turned his phone off. Scenario B.

The fact that at that moment Brian permanently disappeared points at Scenario A. In other words, whatever factor(s) blocked the signal and blocked ability to make the calls may well also be factor(s) that led to Brian's demise. One potential factor - an accident in the construction area....

Scenario B seems unlikely. Why would he blow off good friends who he evidently wanted to see? And he had a steady GF, who'd gone home for a few days. 2am Friday night, bad time to turn off the phone, cuz, you know what the GF is gonna think .....

 

[Looking4Brian]

So Brian was supposed to call the invitees to confirm. It would seem likely that'd he'd have made those calls right around the time he was ready to depart the UTS, so as soon as he got away from Clint/Meredith (who were not invited). In my view, this suggests that whatever happened to Brian happened within moments after he was last seen around 2am, and thus quite possibly before he managed to exit the Gateway complex (which Gateway surveillance cam video suggests he did not, and which neighborhood surveillance video also provided no evidence he did).

So, to me, both the phone suddenly going straight to VM, and Brian's having failed to make calls to invitees, hint that Brian may have, very soon after 2am, become unable to make calls, and his phone may have become not able to link up with a cell tower. Scenario A.

Or, he may have decided to blow everyone off and turned his phone off. Scenario B.

The fact that at that moment Brian permanently disappeared points at Scenario A. In other words, whatever factor(s) blocked the signal and blocked ability to make the calls may well also be factor(s) that led to Brian's demise. One potential factor - an accident in the construction area....

Scenario B seems unlikely. Why would he blow off good friends who he evidently wanted to see? And he had a steady GF, who'd gone home for a few days. 2am Friday night, bad time to turn off the phone, cuz, you know what the GF is gonna think .....

From what we know from Cingular, Brian’s phone was on until around 2:11 am when Clint text him. Then it appeared to be off and come back on Monday evening. There are a few scenarios that could explain Brian’s phone going off including the 2 you mentioned.

 

[neesaki]

Yes LE have Brian’s phone records. There were several people calling Brian’s phone, but there was not any outgoing activity.

Thank you @Looking4Brian . In follow up then,

-Did he do text messaging and were they able to get those?

-Was there anything in the calls and texts, in the days before and then after, indicating he had arranged to meet up with someone after leaving the UTS?

-Were there completed calls in which Brian actually talked to the person , or did they all go to voice mail?

-And did LE question / investigate everyone he had received calls from?

Thank you very much in advance!

 

[neesaki]

Honestly I believe every relationship Brian had was blown out of proportion and a narrative was given that painted everyone favorably except Clint. Brian’s relationship with his Mom is the one relationship I believe was reported correctly. His relationship with Randy was incredibly strained. Brian and Derek didn’t have much of a relationship due to different lifestyles until their Mom passed away. Sadly they only became closer for 3 weeks before Brian disappeared. I believe that Brian loved Alexis, but a proposal was not in the works. This came from Alexis’ dad. I’ve also been told that Alexis was so much like Renee that many believed that is what drew Brian to Alexis. Even though he loved Alexis, Brian was struggling with his sexuality. The PI has a statement from a friend of Brian’s about a bisexual encounter that the 2 had. I also have messages from an individual close to the case stating Brian and Clint decided not to be roommates due to an advance that one made towards the other. I think that Brian and Clint’s relationship became very strained, but it wasn’t always that way. Brian being off and on communicating with people via phone doesn’t bother me. It’s consistent and seemed to be normal for Brian based on what I see on his phone records. Not to mention Brian traveled more than we even knew in 2005 and had only been back from his travels a few months
Before he went missing. With his travels, his Mom’s illness, and medical school I can see why he chose not to communicate with people regularly.

Can you elaborate any on the bolded? TIA

 

[itsrak]

From what we know from Cingular, Brian’s phone was on until around 2:11 am when Clint text him. Then it appeared to be off and come back on Monday evening. There are a few scenarios that could explain Brian’s phone going off including the 2 you mentioned.

What lead Cingular and/or you to believe Brian's phone 'came back on' on evening of Monday, 4/3/06? Presumably, unrelated to Cingular's initiation on that date of pings to Brian's phone, right? Because pings wouldn't have anything to do with phone being on or off, right, because pings can reach a phone with batteries charged whether phone is turned on or turned off, right?

I ask because I think it likely that Brian did not turn his phone off on 4/1/06, and he died that early morn, and his phone inadvertently became blocked from getting cell signal and has been with his remains the whole time to this day, and thus would never have been turned back on on 4/3/06 or on any other date by Brian or anyone else ...

 

[Kaie]

What lead Cingular and/or you to believe Brian's phone 'came back on' on evening of Monday, 4/3/06? Presumably, unrelated to Cingular's initiation on that date of pings to Brian's phone, right? Because pings wouldn't have anything to do with phone being on or off, right, because pings can reach a phone with batteries charged whether phone is turned on or turned off, right?

I ask because I think it likely that Brian did not turn his phone off on 4/1/06, and he died that early morn, and his phone inadvertently became blocked from getting cell signal and has been with his remains the whole time to this day, and thus would never have been turned back on on 4/3/06 or on any other date by Brian or anyone else ...

You know how if you're in a virtually no signal area, every now and then you might look at your phone and see you have picked up a very weak signal for a fleeting moment? Do you think it might have been like that? Hence the appearance of a phone getting turned off and then back on?

 

[itsrak]

You know how if you're in a virtually no signal area, every now and then you might look at your phone and see you have picked up a very weak signal for a fleeting moment? Do you think it might have been like that? Hence the appearance of a phone getting turned off and then back on?

You know how if you're in a virtually no signal area, every now and then you might look at your phone and see you have picked up a very weak signal for a fleeting moment? Do you think it might have been like that? Hence the appearance of a phone getting turned off and then back on?

Could be, I dunno. I'm mainly wondering what led CPD and/or Cingular and/or Looking4Brian to surmise that phone seemed to come on on that date. Because, again, I doubt that the phone has ever been switched on or off since post-2am 4/1/06, because I think the phone has probably been with Brian, deceased, since that time.

In other words, what do they know that led them to think that the phone may have gone from off to on on that date - 4/3/06...

 

[Ozoner]

Listening to Hurst's interview in the "Dead or Alive" podcast, it doesn't sound like searching the construction site was LE's first strategy. It sounds like the focus was initially on finding Brian's phone through pings. It may be that the building and construction site were searched only after attempts to locate the phone failed, which might have meant a delay of several days. So far as I know, Hurst has never stated the exact date on which the construction site was exhaustively searched. I think there's a reason why LE doesn't want the public to know that, and I think the reason is that the search did not occur on Monday morning, which would mean that some work was done at the site after Brian disappeared but before the first search was conducted. Moreover, the first search may have been cursory. LE needs to release a detailed timeline of their searches in this case.
-
We haven't talked much about construction garbage, but every construction site generates a certain amount of scrap material. Do we know how that construction garbage was dealt with? On some construction sites, scrap materials are buried. Could there have been a pit on site for burying scrap materials? Brian could have fallen into such a hole and been inadvertantly concealed by the next load of scrap material that was dumped into the hole. The hole might then have been filled in. All of that could have happened before the site was searched. Even though it happens all the time, burying scrap materials on site is probably a code violation; it's done to avoid landfill fees and dumpster fees. The construction site manager might have neglected to mention the existence of such a refuse pit to LE.