Hello,
I worked closely with Michael for the better part of 2021. The reason he was in New Orleans was to do research, take photos/videos, and talk to businesses for his walking tour company. This was the game plan that we followed when launching other cities. This is a legitimate business and his reasons for being in New Orleans were legitimate, there were no secret meetings or connections to other cases.
He was to arrive in New Orleans the morning of the 5th and depart the evening of the 6th.
We were in contact before boarding his plane to New Orleans and briefly that morning (5th). I did not speak to him again after that.
I received two phone calls on Friday morning (7th) from his wife and his sister, asking if I had heard from him. He had not returned home, and they immediately filed a missing person’s report with the New Orleans PD and hired a private investigator.
Despite the news stating that the report was filed on the 11th, it was actually filed on the 7th.
The family has told me that throughout this investigation, the police were exceedingly unhelpful; dragging their feet, refusing to return calls, being disinterested in the case, and seeming to be more bothered with being asked for assistance than in a person missing,
So quickly, his tight-knit community came together and started a search party. These efforts resulted in learning where he stayed, places he went, where his card was used, and they also spoke to some people who interacted with him (consensus being: He was memorable due to his modest, friendly, charismatic, and sweet personality.) This information was all shared with the police.
He was last seen on camera around 3 pm on Thursday. His card was last used on Thursday afternoon. Reports of his credit card still being used after the 6th were inaccurate and all possible sightings of him turned out to be someone else/unverifiable.
One week after his disappearance a police officer reported to his brother that he had seen a man jump from a bridge who fit Michael’s description, shortly after the time he last texted his wife.
This brings up many questions:
If an officer saw someone jump from a bridge and was close enough to be able to identify him, why was the bridge not shut down? Why was there no search for a body in the waters? Why was the media unaware of a supposed jumper? Why were there no reports about this, anywhere? Why did this officer not make a report or call 911? Why did it take 7 days for this to be mentioned? Why was the narrative of him intentionally “missing” being fed to the public?
From there the focus transitioned from searching for him alive to searching the river for a recovery.
His family told me this information (the officer sighting) on the 16th of January. As of today, nothing has yet been found. No body, no belongings, no verifiable reports (other than that one officer's statement) of someone jumping from a bridge (camera footage, etc.)
I have spoken with his family recently and while I have not been privy to the finer details of this case and there could be (most likely is) some information I do not know, what I do know is that he is not home. He is still missing. There was no note found, his cards have not been used, there has been no activity on his accounts, and no one has seen him or heard from him.
There are a lot more questions than answers. In fact, there are no answers that lead to where he (/his body) is or what happened to him.
I wanted to make this post because I see a lot of assumptions that make me uncomfortable. Ideas that may paint Michael in a negative light, such as that news report about him abandoning his family to party, escape his religion, or run away with someone else.
He was one of the kindest, warmest, compassionate, and thoughtful people I’ve known. He was honest, upfront, and cared so much about the happiness and well-being of others. He would not have abandoned everything, his family, his community, or his new startup, to run off with someone else, leave his religion, or engage with nefarious people.
Whether he was in the wrong place at the wrong time or had things going on mentally that I was not aware of and reached a breaking point, I do not know. But whatever the reasons, he was an amazing person and it has been beyond frustrating to see a lack of interest from the police and the media.
