Found Deceased OK - Mark Chastain, Billy Chastain, Mike Sparks, Alex Stevens, Okmulgee, 9 Oct 2022

[LauraAnne]

Strange to go to a salvage yard on bicycles ....if you buy a part, you're hardly going to be able to take it with you.

Would a salvage yard be open after 8 pm on a Sunday?

 

[annpats]

Would a salvage yard be open after 8 pm on a Sunday?

Good point! I'm thinking not.

 

[Eli9]

Not too much of an update but -

Search for four missing men continues in Okmulgee County

The men have not been seen or heard from since taking off on bicycles from Billy Chastain’s home Sunday evening.

www.fox23.com

Okmulgee Police Chief Joe Prentice says crews are conducting a grid search of the salvage yard where Mark Chastain’s phone was last pinged.

Investigators believe Mark and Mike are the only two who left the area with cell phones.

At this point, Chief Prentice does not believe foul play is involved. “The longer they’re missing, the more concerned I am but I have yet to find any evidence that there’s any foul play involved,” he said in an interview shortly before 2pm.

The search is ongoing and Prentice says additional resources will be arriving later Wednesday afternoon, including a K9.

Because the terrain can be difficult to walk across, officers are using drones to help in their search.

 

[LauraAnne]

Grid search being conducted in the salvage yard.

Search for four missing men continues in Okmulgee County

The men have not been seen or heard from since taking off on bicycles from Billy Chastain’s home Sunday evening.

www.fox23.com

 

[shefner]

It's getting tougher to believe that 4 men could be missing for three full days and there not be some type of foul play involved. After all, 3 of the men were reported missing on Sunday night, when they didn't appear back home for the day. Seems if leaving home for an extended time was a habit for any of them, their loved ones wouldn't have been so quick to report them missing.

LE made the comment that walking the area would be difficult so they are using drones. I imagine riding bikes in the area would also be a challenge. Not sure what to make of it all but they are bringing in a K-9. Hoping we will know more soon.

 

[LauraAnne]

It's getting tougher to believe that 4 men could be missing for three full days and there not be some type of foul play involved. After all, 3 of the men were reported missing on Sunday night, when they didn't appear back home for the day. Seems if leaving home for an extended time was a habit for any of them, their loved ones wouldn't have been so quick to report them missing.

LE made the comment that walking the area would be difficult so they are using drones. I imagine riding bikes in the area would also be a challenge. Not sure what to make of it all but they are bringing in a K-9. Hoping we will know more soon.

I agree. In the news interview, Mark's wife Jessica said Mark was due to watch their youngest Monday am, when Jessica went to a new job, and was supposed to pick up the older one from school Monday. The reporter asked, "and he wouldn't miss those things?" and Jessica immediately said "no". It's kind of believable that ONE man would run off, but not FOUR.

I'm wondering if they got themselves stuck in a building where the door locked behind them, or something like that. The descriptions their friends and family offer, it would be VERY difficult to kidnap these men - wouldn't be a first choice for anyone kidnapping people.

I'm running a little short on things that could have happened to all four of them simultaneously.

 

[TwinkieDefense]

Oct 12, 2022 article has information on some of their supposed locations. The below picture gives me a lot better idea of what the searchers are facing. Looks pretty rough to me. Sounds like LE are doing what they can based on information they’ve gathered.

'It Is So Unusual:' Okmulgee Police Continue Search For 4 Missing Men

Okmulgee Police are searching for four men Wednesday who have been reported missing.

www.news9.com

[…]

Investigators are searching at a salvage yard between Okmulgee and Schulter on Wednesday. They say this is an area where they last got a GPS location ping from one of the men's cell phones.

[…]

. . . He says the men were believed to be together, they visited a salvage yard west of Okmulgee, then stopped at a Murphy's gas station, then stopped at a different salvage yard near Schulter, where Mark Chastain's phone either died or turned off.

Related Story: Okmulgee Police Searching For 4 Men Reported Missing Overnight

Image Provided By: Osage SkyNews 6

“At this point, the evidence tells me I have four missing adults, I have no evidence there’s any violence involved at this point, we always consider that a possibility in any missing persons case and we’re not discounting that possibility, but not persons of interest," Prentice said.

[…]

Prentice says if anyone knows anything at all, they need to come forward.
"If they aren’t sure, I would rather run it out and find out it was not relevant than to not know About it," he said.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Okmulgee Police Department.

[…]

 

[LauraAnne]

This is just baffling. What in the world were they doing, going from Okmulgee salvage yard, to Murphy's gas station (which appears to be in the south central part of Okmulgee) to a salvage yard near Schulter, which appears to be about 4 miles away? On bicycles, at night on a Sunday?

They were last seen "leaving Billy's house", which indicates someone was there when they all decided to leave on bikes. How did these friends all have bikes at Billy's house? What did the person who last saw them say they were planning to do?

I still think there's something not being said here, but I don't know what that would be.

 

[realanastasia]

The only scenario I can think of would be if they were looking to enter the scrapyard after hours in the hopes of finding items to “scrap” for quick cash, and then encountered ill-intentioned individuals either at the scrapyard or after they sold it, or possibly during an illicit transaction afterwards. I don’t think there’s any indications that these guys would be likely to engage in this behavior, but apart from something like that I’ve no idea how four grown men on bicycles could just vanish without a trace.

 

[shefner]

"Prentice says they are following leads based on the GPS tracker, possible reported sightings and talking to family."

From the recent article posted above, it sounds like police are using multiple avenues to piece together what may have happened. I am wondering if either salvage yard has surveillance cameras? Its likely the gas station would have cameras. Perhaps these things are being reviewed.

At some point, officers found a car and a bike belonging to one of the men. With four missing persons, it's challenging to keep the information straight.

 

[LauraAnne]

"Prentice says they are following leads based on the GPS tracker, possible reported sightings and talking to family."

From the recent article posted above, it sounds like police are using multiple avenues to piece together what may have happened. I am wondering if either salvage yard has surveillance cameras? Its likely the gas station would have cameras. Perhaps these things are being reviewed.

At some point, officers found a car and a bike belonging to one of the men. With four missing persons, it's challenging to keep the information straight.

From what I understand, the car siting is a red herring. I think it was parked back at Billy's house, which was very close to the first salvage yard they visited that night.

Also, I don't think the bike they found is related to the 4 men. It was a child's bike, and from the picture, weeds had grown up in and around it.

 

[vls12345]

I'm wondering if they got themselves stuck in a building where the door locked behind them, or something like that. The descriptions their friends and family offer, it would be VERY difficult to kidnap these men - wouldn't be a first choice for anyone kidnapping people.

I'm running a little short on things that could have happened to all four of them simultaneously.

I agree.

Random thoughts/speculation only:
Cave-in where all 4 fell somewhere? (Old well or something like that?)
Carbon monoxide poisoning (if they were inside somewhere)?
Ate/ingested something poisonous?

MOO. Just completely wild guesses on my part because I am stumped.

 

[charminglane]

I agree.

Random thoughts/speculation only:
Cave-in where all 4 fell somewhere? (Old well or something like that?)
Carbon monoxide poisoning (if they were inside somewhere)?
Ate/ingested something poisonous?

MOO. Just completely wild guesses on my part because I am stumped.

Illegally entering property?

 

[shefner]

From what I understand, the car siting is a red herring. I think it was parked back at Billy's house, which was very close to the first salvage yard they visited that night.

Also, I don't think the bike they found is related to the 4 men. It was a child's bike, and from the picture, weeds had grown up in and around it.

Thanks for the update. Somehow I missed this. It’s tough to follow multiple cases so I appreciate all your posts.

 

[caradana]

Exceptionally uncommon case, piqued my attention. No hypotheses at all yet.

 

[Speculaytor]

What's not being said here? This is the most unusual story - 4 men go missing, from the same home on bicycles after dark, and yet one of them's car and possibly his bike are found near a salvage yard?

I can't imagine what could have happened. Jails and hospitals have been checked, which is a requirement there for filing a missing adult report

They headed to the salvage yard, on bikes, at night? I picture one of those places you see in movies with junked cars all over, chain linked fence with barbed wire on top, and vicious dogs inside guarding the place. My first thought was that they were shot at the salvage yard by accident, mistaken for others/nefarious people, the crime covered up? MHOO

I am aware we know just about nothing yet, so this idea may sound ridiculous very soon.

 

[Speculaytor]

I would love someone to figure out if MC's phone tracked near the salvage yard?

 

[charminglane]

They headed to the salvage yard, on bikes, at night? I picture one of those places you see in movies with junked cars all over, chain linked fence with barbed wire on top, and vicious dogs inside guarding the place. My first thought was that they were shot at the salvage yard by accident, mistaken for others/nefarious people, the crime covered up? MHOO

I am aware we know just about nothing yet, so this idea may sound ridiculous very soon.

I am right there with you in the vision, fierce dogs with dripping fangs.
Ha.

 

[Speculaytor]

Illegally entering property?

Yes, I posted down the line from you my idea, but this is the line of thinking I had without much else to go on yet.

 

[Speculaytor]

Oct 12, 2022 article has information on some of their supposed locations. The below picture gives me a lot better idea of what the searchers are facing. Looks pretty rough to me. Sounds like LE are doing what they can based on information they’ve gathered.

'It Is So Unusual:' Okmulgee Police Continue Search For 4 Missing Men

Okmulgee Police are searching for four men Wednesday who have been reported missing.

www.news9.com

[…]

Investigators are searching at a salvage yard between Okmulgee and Schulter on Wednesday. They say this is an area where they last got a GPS location ping from one of the men's cell phones.

[…]

. . . He says the men were believed to be together, they visited a salvage yard west of Okmulgee, then stopped at a Murphy's gas station, then stopped at a different salvage yard near Schulter, where Mark Chastain's phone either died or turned off.

Related Story: Okmulgee Police Searching For 4 Men Reported Missing Overnight

Image Provided By: Osage SkyNews 6

“At this point, the evidence tells me I have four missing adults, I have no evidence there’s any violence involved at this point, we always consider that a possibility in any missing persons case and we’re not discounting that possibility, but not persons of interest," Prentice said.

[…]

Prentice says if anyone knows anything at all, they need to come forward.
"If they aren’t sure, I would rather run it out and find out it was not relevant than to not know About it," he said.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Okmulgee Police Department.

[…]

This is GREAT. So, they stopped at one salvage yard (sy), then they stopped at a gas station before going to a second sy near Shulter where MC's phone went dead/was turned off. Is that a picture of the sy near Shulter where police are searching? It is very large, lot's of woods. Doesn't seem like a place you would go after dark? I see no lights, can anyone else?