CO CO - Christopher Harvey, 14, Hinsdale County, 11 July 1984

[JusticeWillBeServed]

NamUs

Doe Network

Charley Project

Vital Statistics at Time of Disappearance
• Missing Since: July 11, 1984 from Hinsdale County, Colorado
• Classification: Non-Family Abduction
• Date Of Birth: August 9, 1969
• Age: 14 years old
• Height and Weight: 5'11, 135 pounds
• Distinguishing Characteristics: Caucasian male. Light brown hair, hazel eyes. Christopher has moles on both of his arms and on the upper right side of his chest. His nickname is Chris.
• Clothing/Jewelry Description: A long-sleeved brown or tan plaid shirt, blue jeans, a leather Western-style belt with the buckle inscribed "CHRIS", Nike hiking shoes with red laces, and a black digital watch.

Details of Disappearance
Christopher and his family were staying at their summer trailer home in Hinsdale County, Colorado in July 1984. The residence was located in a mobile home park on the edge of the San Juan National Forest, approximately 17 miles northwest of Pagosa Springs, Colorado. Christopher visited a neighbor's trailer on July 11, 1984 and spoke to him about a band camp he planned to attend later in the summer. He left the friend's home at approximately 3:30 p.m. He disappeared when he went to go walk his dog. The dog came back home, but Christopher has never been seen again. Authorities initially believed he had gone for a hike and gotten lost. They stated he is an excellent backpacker, but did not have the necessary supplies for an extended time in the forest. An extensive search of the surrounding area turned up no sign of him, and investigators concluded he was almost certainly not in the county.

A badly beaten teenager was found wandering around on a mountain road in Eagle County, Colorado six weeks after Christopher's disappearance. He couldn't say who he was and he wasn't carrying any identification. He was taken to the hospital and fell into a coma, suffering from extensive brain damage. The boy had severe facial injuries, but Christopher's parents identified him as their son. Several days later, they began to have doubts about the identification and did a dental records comparison. The injured boy was not Christopher.

Foul play is now suspected in Christopher's disappearance. His case remains unsolved. He was a resident of Andrews, Texas in 1984; Texas authorities are assisting with the investigation.


A Family Presses Search for Son Who Is Missing - November 1984

 

[VT802]

Did they ever identify whom the other boy with the facial injuries was? If these kids were both victims of a disappearance and they both were in or around the same area doesn't that raise some flags being that the kids were closely correlated in time and distance ? What ever happened to this wrongly identified boy?

This is a odd story but as a parent I can't imagine how badly these guys wanted that kid to be there lost child, crushing


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[Sillybilly]

Thanks JusticeWillBeServed. You beat me to it.

I've moved this thread into Missing Persons Discussion so it has more visibility.

:tyou:

 

[azure]

Did they ever identify whom the other boy with the facial injuries was? If these kids were both victims of a disappearance and they both were in or around the same area doesn't that raise some flags being that the kids were closely correlated in time and distance ? What ever happened to this wrongly identified boy?

This is a odd story but as a parent I can't imagine how badly these guys wanted that kid to be there lost child, crushing


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

(modsnip)

ETA: MSM link: http://www.nytimes.com/1984/11/04/us/a-family-presses-search-for-son-who-is-missing.html

ETA2: A bit more on Scoot Yoos via MSM: https://news.google.com/newspapers?...AIBAJ&sjid=jfkDAAAAIBAJ&pg=7004,2508852&hl=en

 

[neesaki]

Bringing this link over from JG's thread: It's not the article, it's the first comment under the article from 2011, the poster states she saw Christopher in California with two men and he was in trouble and terrified. She called "lost children" but doesn't say anything about calling LE. I wonder if it was really him.

http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2011/02/10/50-people-in-50-days-searching-for-a-9-year-old-boy/

http://www.missingkids.com/missingk...aseLang=en_US&searchLang=en_US&caseNum=603350

 

[Find Brenda]

Bumping for Chris.

 

[Savemecastiel]

Bumping

 

[JerseyGirl]

After visiting a friend in the Hinsdale County mobile home park where his family spent their summers, 14-year-old Christopher Harvey set off to walk his dog. Though the dog returned, Christopher never did.

The teen's disappearance — which was further muddled when a badly-beaten boy around the same age was incorrectly identified as Christopher six weeks later — was chronicled in a November 1984 story in the New York Times.

Missing children: 8 Colorado kids who vanished without a trace

 

[sonz82]

Colorado Cold Case Files - Case Detail: Christopher Harvey

 

[ChatteringBirds]

42DMCO - Christopher James Harvey

More photos of Christopher:

Left and center: Harvey, circa 1984; Right and far right: Age-progressed to age 36 (circa 2006); Age-progressed to age 42

Christopher would be currently 51 years old.

"Christopher, who is originally from Texas, disappeared from a summer home 17 miles northwest of Pagosa Springs, Colorado. When his parents checked with neighbors in the small mobile park that they were staying, they discovered that Chris had visited with a friend around 3PM to talk about a band camp that he was planning to attend later in the summer. The search by authorities for the missing boy did not begin until around noon the next day. Foul play is suspected.
Investigating Agency(s)
Agency Name: Andrews County Sheriff's Office
Agency Contact Person: Sheriff Sam Jones
Agency Phone Number: (432) 523-5545
Agency Name: Hinsdale County Sheriff's Office
Agency Contact Person: Sheriff Ronald Bruce
Agency Phone Number: (970) 944-2291
Agency E-Mail: N/A
Agency Case Number: H78423
NCIC Case Number: M133011775
NamUs Case Number: 6159

Dentals: Available
Fingerprints: Not Available
DNA: Available"

Christopher James Harvey – The Charley Project

"Authorities initially believed he had gone for a hike and gotten lost. They stated he is an excellent backpacker, but did not have the necessary supplies for an extended time in the forest. An extensive search of the surrounding area turned up no sign of him, and investigators concluded he was almost certainly not in the county.
A badly beaten teenager was found wandering around on a mountain road in Eagle County, Colorado six weeks after Christopher's disappearance. He couldn't say who he was and he wasn't carrying any identification. He was taken to the hospital and fell into a coma, suffering from extensive brain damage.

The boy had severe facial injuries, but Christopher's parents identified him as their son. Several days later, they began to have doubts about the identification and did a dental records comparison. The injured boy was not Christopher.
Foul play is now suspected in Christopher's disappearance. His case remains unsolved. He was a resident of Andrews, Texas in 1984; Texas authorities are assisting with the investigation."

 

[cnmccarthy]

While not anything new I found something that was heartwarming about this case. Apparently Scott and Chris’s families remained close after Scott was discovered.

“His parents and Christopher’s parents developed a great relationship and kept track of Scott’s progress. They continued to spread the word about their son’s disappearance and sent out posters with his information displayed on them.”

Christopher James Harvey

 

[azrt66]

Some updates after digging through local newspaper archives and other sources such as this 1985 FBI report (pg 64).

- Chris was staying at his family's summer property. They lived in Andrews, Texas where Chris' parents both worked for the schools. His father was band director and his mother an elementary school teacher. They were staying at the Sportsman's Campground & Mountain Cabins. Chris was known to be an avid outdoor kid but the day he disappeared had only 35 cents and the clothes he was wearing.

- "Chris was last seen [Wednesday] July 11, 1984 when he left the Harvey's trailer to visit an elderly couple next door. "They had two teenaged girls visiting with them and Chris had been visiting them" Mrs. Harvey said. "The girls had left and gone back home, but Chris had gone to check on the older couple" she said."

- "Mrs. Harvey [Chris' mother] had laid down for a nap and Mr. Harvey [Chris' father] had just finished visiting with friends from Monahans [Texas] then left to go fishing nearby."

- "That afternoon, Chris' father reported coming back from fishing and realized his son was not around. The family dog, which usually followed Chris, was there without him."

- "Later in the afternoon, Chris' grandmother, also staying there, asked where the young boy was. Checks with nearby neighbors found that no one had seen him."

- "Mrs. Harvey said nothing unusual happened prior to Chris disappearance and that he had begun packing to attend the Texas Tech band camp scheduled a week later in Lubbock. "We had planned to leave for Albuquerque that Friday to buy clothes for the band camp" Mrs. Harvey said."

- "Bloodhounds followed a [scent] track to a small store [the Sportsman's supply store], nobody there remembered seeing him."

- "The FBI first learned of Christopher's disappearance from his father on July 18, 1984... Agents immediately went to the area of Harvey's summer residence and spoke with the family, friends, and relatives. Bureau agents also went to a small local store [where the bloodhounds tracked] west of the summer residence and interviewed the personnel who worked there. The employees stated they knew Christopher but had not seen him on the afternoon of July 11, 1984. They also could not recall any strangers or anything unusual that day."

- "According to Christopher's parents and other members, Christopher was verbally chastised by his father for being "smart-mouthed" on the afternoon of July 11, 1984, the day of his disappearance."

- "With the assistance of EMS Coordinator Jerry Gray, the southern end of the county was canvassed again, this time with particular emphasis on ice caves where Chris reportedly liked to climb. While nothing was found, Gray said, "I am not confident we ever found the ice caves he had talked about."

- Chris' mother, Judith 'Judy' Claire Argo Harvey, passed away in Amarillo in 2016. His father, Marvin James 'Jim' Harvey, is said to have since moved to Colorado where he now lives just a few miles from the location that Chris had disappeared from. Prior to moving there, he was said to visit every year and explore the area caves looking for his son. Unsolved Mysteries sought to feature the story but the family declined.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

Heartbreaking.
It sounds like the person or people who harmed the other boy (Scott) were not caught?
I hope Christopher was not abducted and that answers still come for his family.

 

[azrt66]

The Scott Foos case has nothing to do with Chris Harvey's disappearance. Foos was an adult hitchhiking around the country. He was beaten almost 2 months after Chris went missing and nearly 200 miles away by Denver. The only reason it is mentioned in this case is because he was unrecognizable, and somebody thought it may be the missing kid. Chris was 5'11" tall and his parents went to the hospital to see the patient. He was completely covered in bandages but when the Harvey's talked to him and held his hand he squeezed it. He was quickly ruled out as being Harvey. There is no evidence that Chris Harvey was ever abducted or left the Williams Creek recreation area.

 

[azrt66]

I can’t find any details on this other unsolved 1986 cold case nearby only ~10 miles away from where Harvey disappeared. Possible connected? Census data shows only 400 people in the county.

Bruce also remains frustrated by a 1984 cold case he inherited, the disappearance of Chris Harvey from the south end of Hinsdale County.​

“We have no idea where that young man ended up. I’m convinced he’s dead, but I don’t know where the body is,” said Bruce, who is similarly frustrated by a 1986 cold case, in which a body was found in a tent by Little Emerald Lake.

Sheriffs In The Sunset: Ron Bruce, Hinsdale County​

​

 

[MissTcc]

Chris Harvey still missing.

 

[Find Brenda]

Chris Harvey still missing.

Thanks for sharing.

Sadly, Captain Gourley was also mentioned on that same page. He went missing in action after his plane was shot down over Laos during the Vietnam War. It is possible that he was a POW that was never recovered.

Bio, Gourley, Laurent L.

A truly sad newspaper page

 

[azrt66]

A collection of newspaper articles & photos for anyone interested:

Chris Harvey Case - Google Drive

 

[azrt66]

I want to add a few considerations in this case after reviewing many newspaper articles, documents, and discussing the case with people close to the family & the park where he went missing:

• Those at the Sportsmans Campground where the boy disappeared from claim the fight that day between Chris and his father was very loud and suspected to be more than just an oral argument. The trailer homes at the park are often passed down generations. Everyone knew everyone else and any strangers coming to the small campground community would have been noticed. They are adamant nobody kidnapped Chris that day.

• Chris was staying with his parents at the trailer, but his sister was in Texas at camp. He is said to go missing around 3:30pm after visiting a neighbor's trailer. Investigators do not appear to have any suspicion of the neighbors which fully cooperated. Chris had a tent outside of his family trailer he was usually in. The dog isn't heard to have been barking which would have alerted of an abduction. During this time the mother is said to be napping in the trailer while the father is off fishing nearby. The parents call police at 11pm that night to report him missing. The first search was conducted the following day nearly 24 hours after Chris was last seen.

• Almost everyone in Chris' family is interviewed in newspaper articles: mom, sister, uncle, grandparents, etc. with one notable exception- his father. To this day the father refuses to speak about it. Those familiar claim it is too painful for him to talk about.

• Chris has never been legally declared dead. No headstone or marker has been erected. No memorial service has ever been held. His mother passed in 2016 and is buried in Amarillo with the adjacent space reserved for his father who is now 76 years old.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

any strangers coming to the small campground community would have been noticed

Quote RSBM.
We hope they would have been noticed, but it's not a fact that they would have been noticed.

Also if a "stranger" would have been seen, why wouldn't something else suspicious have been heard or seen?