CA CA - Michael Madden, 20, Sonora, 12 Aug 1996

[Kat]

The Doe Network:
Case File 1629DMCA

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/1629dmca.html

Michael Larry Madden
Missing since August 12, 1996 from Sonora, Tuolumne County, California
Classification: Endangered Missing



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Vital Statistics
•Date Of Birth: January 22, 1976
•Age at Time of Disappearance: 20 years old
•Height and Weight at Time of Disappearance: 6'1"; 195 lbs.
•Distinguishing Characteristics: White male. Light brown hair; hazel eyes.
•Marks, Scars: 3" surgical scar on left collar bone.
•Clothing: T-shirt, possibly shorts, a "49'er" or "San Francisco Giants" baseball cap, athletic shoes or hiking boots.
•Dentals: Available



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Circumstances of Disappearance
Madden, a student at Humboldt State University, took his dog, Matilda, and headed into the mountains August 11 in a "Chevrolet Cavalier" to go fishing out of the Sand Bar Flat campground near Pinecrest in Tuolumne County in the Stanislaus National Forest. Friends who went to the Sand Bar Flat campground a few days later reported Madden missing.
He was last seen on August 12, 1996 while camping and fishing with an individual he met at a campground there.
The Sheriff's Department scoured the area with search-and-rescue teams, divers and dogs and came up with nothing.
Foul play is suspected.



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Investigators
If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:

Tuolumne County Sheriff's Office
209-533-5822

Agency Case Number: 96-2967

NCIC Number: M-953354793
Please refer to this number when contacting any agency with information regarding this case.

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/m/madden_michael.html
More details of circumstances at link above.

http://www.childquest.org/viewcase.php?casenum=1121&person=m1

http://www.theyaremissed.org/ncma/gallery/ncmaprofile_all.php?A200300254W

http://www.modbee.com/2008/10/19/468062/father-died-never-knowing-missing.html
Sunday, Oct. 19, 2008
Father died never knowing missing son's fate

http://www.modbee.com/2002/03/25/128854_levy-case-stirring-emotions.html
Interview with Michael's Dad before he passed away. Some details in article about Michael's disappearance.

https://www.findthemissing.org/cases/4473/2/ NamUs profile: Dental: available to be entered later. Fingerprints: Not available DNA: not available.

Mike has been missing 14 years, his Father worked tirelessly to try to bring him home. His Father passed away not knowing where his beloved Son was located.

Come home soon Mike.

 

[MagnoliaMountain]

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/m/madden_michael.html

I believe Joseph Tine is more than likely involved in Michael's disappearance. Everything sounds quite suspicious.

 

[MagnoliaMountain]

Michael and his Mom

 

[MagnoliaMountain]

Thinking of Michael.

 

[MagnoliaMountain]

Tomorrow will be the 17th anniversary of Michael's disappearance.

 

[MagnoliaMountain]

Bumping!

 

[MagnoliaMountain]

Michael has been missing for 19 years.

 

[MagnoliaMountain]

Michael's Charley project profile has been updated.

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/m/madden_michael.html

There have been no arrests in his case and it remains unsolved. Authorities think he met with foul play at the campground, possibly at the hands of an unknown serial killer or even Cary Stayner. No proof of anyone's involvement in this case.

His dog Matilda disappeared with Michael and came back to the campsite 4 days later, dehydrated and couldn't lead searchers to Michael. To me it sounds like she stayed with his body after he had been hurt/killed, and then returned...so sad.

 

[RSully94]

This case really creeped me out. Thank god Matilda wasn't hurt. But I think authorities should look closer at Joseph Tine. He obviously met Mike before he disappeared and a gun just seems too suspicious

 

[MagnoliaMountain]

Michael has been missing for 20 years this month.

 

[Alleykins]

Just posting this here, not much information available at this time.
http://fox40.com/2016/12/28/possible-human-remains-found-in-tuolumne-county-mineshaft/

 

[MagnoliaMountain]

I googled for Joseph Tine in CA and found one in his 60s living in Tracy, CA. I guess it could be him.

 

[MagnoliaMountain]

Updated Charley Project link: http://charleyproject.org/case/michael-larry-madden

 

[MagnoliaMountain]

Just posting this here, not much information available at this time.
http://fox40.com/2016/12/28/possible-human-remains-found-in-tuolumne-county-mineshaft/

http://www.modbee.com/news/article130160904.html

Remains found in mineshaft ID’d as those of missing Groveland man

Not Michael.

 

[Archangel85]

This has the obvious signs of foul play.

 

[UCLAEigenguy]

This case is beyond weird and so much information is missing. It sounds like Tuolumne Sheriffs Department handed over all of the files to his parents. Neither is still alive .

I cannot express how remote this campground is. It is 10 miles from the Sonora Pass Highway (CA-108). The turnoff from the highway is not marked at all. The road is partly paved, part dirt, very windy and very steep in places. Getting to the campground requires knowing which turns to make, and there are several of them. It seems so unlikely that his friends would arrive at 2am to this nightmare. This was 1996. Google Maps did not exist, and even if they had cell phones, they most likely did not have reception (there is still no reception in the area). This campground only has 10-12 spaces; it's tiny.

Had Joseph Tine not been identified, I would not buy the friends' story at all (I would question if they even went to the campground); though I still don't know if I buy it.

The fact that Mike's camping spot had a fresh fire means that either the perp was waiting for the friends to arrive, or Tine did something bad to Mike immediately before the friends arrived. (But there is another option). Since there were no cell phones, how would the perp know when company would be arriving? One of his missing sites said that witnesses saw Mike and Tine fishing and camping together. Ok, so this is how he knew Mike's name and how he got into Mike's camping spot and perhaps how he got his boots.

When the friends arrive, Tine pops out of the bushes and wants to know who the friends are and why they are there. Then he asks if they are looking for "Mikey." This could be interpreted as extremely creepy (well, it is either way), or, since Tine was seen camping with Mike, he was creeped out by the friends and legit did not know what happened to Mike (Tine could have been mentally ill too). Mike and Matilda walk off and get into some kind of trouble.

The gun creeped me out at first, but there is a Yelp review for this campground, and it seems to be common knowledge that people do not conceal their arms at this campground. The fact that Tine apparently hung around for hours (?) by himself, cocking his pistol without doing anything threatening to the friends, leads me to believe he may have been mentally ill, and perhaps was also waiting for Mike to return while being suspicious of the friends. LE said something along the lines that Tine's gun had not been fired (unless he had reloaded).

There is still so much bizarre about this case:

1. Witnesses apparently saw Mike at a cabin in Pinecrest. Ok, well, what was he doing? Was he with anyone?
2. This is a very small campground. Were Mike and Tine the only ones there? How did nobody else witness anything?
3. When did Tine move on and how did it happen? At some point, the friends got away from him to get help.
4. There is very little mention of any kind of questioning of Tine except testing his gun and a polygraph (with no shared results).
5. Why did it take Matilda 4 days to return? How far did Mike and Matilda travel? I have several suspicions. Some believe she stayed with Mike after he died. It's also possible she was frightened of Tine (if he was the perp) and only returned once she could not hear or smell him. Since Matilda was dehydrated, I imagine they could not have been near water. Why didn't LE bring Matilda back once she had rested? Who found Matilda to begin with? What direction did she come from?

My puzzle pieces suggest an accident, but Occam's Razor would suggest Tine was responsible. How on Earth can there not be any evidence of what happened and where Mike is? There are only 2 people that know! Instead, LE believes he may have been killed by a random serial killer (??) or Cary Stayner (he only killed women, though he was familiar with the area... Carol Sund's remains were found within 5-10 miles of the turnoff to this campground)

This case, as stated, is something straight out of a horror film.

 

[Gardener1850]

Michael has been added to NAMUS: The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

Circumstances
Date of Last Contact August 12, 1998
NamUs Case Created August 8, 2019
Last Known Location Map
Location Twain Harte, California 95383
Tuolumne County

Circumstances of Disappearance
Madden planned to meet friends at Sand Bar Flat near Sonora, California on August 10, 1986 for camping and fishing. He left his family's residence at approximately 5:00 a.m. on that day and left a note for his mother explaining his plans. He brought his dog, Matilda, and his camping and fishing gear with him to the campsite. He had camped and fished at Sand Bar Flat with his father several times and was very familiar with the area. He has never been seen or heard from again. Madden's friends arrived at the designated location at Sand Bar Flat at approximately 2:00 a.m. on August 12, 1996. There was no sign of Madden or Matilda at the scene, but his gear was found near a freshly-made fire.

 

[Mountain Mama]

It may be worth considering that Michael could have crossed paths with Wesley Shermantine and/or Loren Herzog who lived about 2 hours down the mountain from Sand Bar Flat, in nearby San Joaquin County. Is it possible that one or both of them were at the campground that August 10th, scouting to see if a lone camper chose to frequent that isolated area.

 

[Savemecastiel]

Bumping

 

[ekardh]