Identified! FL - Big Cypress Natl Preserve, Male hiker, "Denim" & "Mostly Harmless", Jul 2018 - Vance Rodriguez

[Narkj]

Hey all, haven’t been on in a while. Saw the Wired story, and that it mentioned what I’d written and figured I would share it. I wasn’t allowed to put it online for 90 days. Here it is.

The Ghost In The Tent

 

[annemc2]

Hey all, haven’t been on in a while. Saw the Wired story, and that it mentioned what I’d written and figured I would share it. I wasn’t allowed to put it online for 90 days. Here it is.

The Ghost In The Tent

Oh wow - thanks for sharing! I'm remembering the 90 day thing now. Very cool to see you in the Wired article!

eta: Just read the attached article. Your investigative and writing skills are amazing. The article turned out marvelously and the breadth of intellectual and emotional work was apparent. Beyond providing the facts, you painted a picture of an ambiguous yet presumably good guy that any of us would be interested to meet. Hopefully one day we will all be able to "know" him. Bravo!!

 

[TinyFleur]

Hey all, haven’t been on in a while. Saw the Wired story, and that it mentioned what I’d written and figured I would share it. I wasn’t allowed to put it online for 90 days. Here it is.

The Ghost In The Tent

Thank you for sharing. Loved the article!

 

[ChatteringBirds]

What am I missing? I dont remember this guy. Is that the correct spelling of his name?

Faries. I'll start a WS thread tonight for him; maybe it will be helpful for the future. I'm sending you a message with his NamUs link.

 

[Sprockett7701]

I see the whole “he might not want to have been identified” issue has been discussed again, and I think for some of us who have been around since day 1, we just want closure for any family members more so than ourselves and some need to publicly out him. I know for me I would be happy to know that he had been identified and that someone in his family told, because at the end of the day despite his wishes or not, he is still someone’s son, potentially brother, uncle, etc et al...someone, somewhere must think of him occasionally, even if not actively looking or aware of his demise.

MOO IMO

 

[K9Enzo]

I don't believe his identity is any of my business as Joe Public but admit to wanting to know because I'm nosey. His story has kept my interest for over two years now and he looks like such a normal guy, anyone that I would pass on the streets. Of course what matters more than anything, IMO, is a loved one of MH who would want answers. There's a little part of me that thinks what if he has an elderly parent who is not social media savvy or really on-line at all. Their connection to the outside world is the good old fashion tv - all of the work that's been done on him is not really on tv. They are missing all the pics that have been compiled from others hikers, etc.

I also think he took intentional steps to conceal who he was (think most of us agree on this). I use to think that had to be exhausting for him to keep this up but then again, I think the hiking community is pretty chill and you share what you want, trail names are common. He found the perfect community. I don't think he was pestered about details about his life or what his name really was. So there's that part of this but I believe LE has an obligation to exhaust all resources before they close the book on this case.

IMO

 

[GatorFL]

What am I missing? I dont remember this guy. Is that the correct spelling of his name?

William Paul Faries, I misspelled it sorry. We've discussed him here on WS for sure.

 

[K9Enzo]

@GatorFL were you able to visit the campsite or area where MH was found? If that was not you that was planning that hiking trip - apologies. I was just curious to hear a trip report from a WS member in this thread. IMO

 

[GatorFL]

@GatorFL were you able to visit the campsite or area where MH was found? If that was not you that was planning that hiking trip - apologies. I was just curious to hear a trip report from a WS member in this thread. IMO

It was me and because of the excessive rain, I still have not made the trip. I can't this weekend but if the weather holds I want to do it the weekend of November 14.

 

[K9Enzo]

It was me and because of the excessive rain, I still have not made the trip. I can't this weekend but if the weather holds I want to do it the weekend of November 14.

I don't blame you with holding off because of the rain. Those are miserable hiking trips (for me). Enjoy, good luck and stay safe

 

[Ursamajr]

Hey all, haven’t been on in a while. Saw the Wired story, and that it mentioned what I’d written and figured I would share it. I wasn’t allowed to put it online for 90 days. Here it is.

The Ghost In The Tent

Nark - you are a websleuthes treasure. Thank you for all you do.

 

[Curious_in_NC]

Hey all, haven’t been on in a while. Saw the Wired story, and that it mentioned what I’d written and figured I would share it. I wasn’t allowed to put it online for 90 days. Here it is.

The Ghost In The Tent

Wow. That was an exceptionally well written article! Thanks for sharing it, and thanks for all the effort you put into unraveling this mystery.

 

[Canaille]

MH mentioned he was heavier prior to starting his hike. Here are some altered photos of him larger, younger, mustachioed, bearded, etc. I know a previous post showed him younger; didn't see any of him heavier, though.
View attachment 270407 View attachment 270408 View attachment 270409 View attachment 270410 View attachment 270411 View attachment 270412 View attachment 270413

This is great!! Every single picture I've seen of him, altered or not, makes me feel like I've crossed paths with him somewhere. It's driving me crazy.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

@Narkj Just read your article. It was excellent.

 

[fred&edna]

Hey all, haven’t been on in a while. Saw the Wired story, and that it mentioned what I’d written and figured I would share it. I wasn’t allowed to put it online for 90 days. Here it is.

The Ghost In The Tent

Wonderful writing! And, I particularly loved the inclusion of the William Hazlitt quote! Thank you!

 

[Narkj]

Thanks all. I was told, for better or worse, that per Florida law his name can’t be kept private if he’s identified. Every state is different but I believe since he wasn’t the victim of a crime, he wouldn’t be protected under crime victim laws.

there’s some small part of me that dreads his identification because it’s likely to be a sad, lonely story.

 

[MadMcGoo]

Hey all, haven’t been on in a while. Saw the Wired story, and that it mentioned what I’d written and figured I would share it. I wasn’t allowed to put it online for 90 days. Here it is.

The Ghost In The Tent

Thank you for this!!! It was very well written. You did right by him.

I’m glad you were able to sleuth this out. It’s been weighing on my mind since he was mentioned. Leaves little doubt in my mind that doppelgängers exist!

Investigators have ruled out dozens of missing persons cases, many sent by amateur sleuths whose confirmation bias helps them disregard clear discrepancies, such as eye color and height. I spent weeks investigating one potential match, a man named “Steve” who possibly went missing in Boulder, Colorado. In early 2020, he sent me a message: “Hey, I’m not dead.”

 

[SugarQueen]

Having been here from fairly early on....
I believe he lived in the Bear Mtn area or somewhere close. Camping in Harriman makes sense. ( it is legal)
The idea that he worked in NYC makes sense. Obviously there are a lot of tech jobs there. Busses from Bear Mtn go right to the city.
I thought then and still think now that an opportunity was missed by LE NOT checking Unionville NY for a camping permit. We know he camped there, I had the names of two people he camped with.
I hope one day he has his name back. Someone, somewhere, has kissed his cheek, held his hand, given him a hug, or just shared a smile with him. He mattered to someone.

 

[reasypeasy]

Having been here from fairly early on....
I believe he lived in the Bear Mtn area or somewhere close. Camping in Harriman makes sense. ( it is legal)
The idea that he worked in NYC makes sense. Obviously there are a lot of tech jobs there. Busses from Bear Mtn go right to the city.
I thought then and still think now that an opportunity was missed by LE NOT checking Unionville NY for a camping permit. We know he camped there, I had the names of two people he camped with.
I hope one day he has his name back. Someone, somewhere, has kissed his cheek, held his hand, given him a hug, or just shared a smile with him. He mattered to someone.

I wonder whether he had a regular refill on something commuter related, like a bus ticket or a parking spot or tolls of some sort he may have cancelled before he started camping?

 

[ymphelp]

Did anyone ever figure out the scar? what type of surgery and the Code note books lead to anything?