Deceased/Not Found NC - Christopher 'Cole' Thomas, 22, Benson, 25 Nov 2016 *Arrests*

[katydid23]

Hmmm...what a strange story the 2 'friends' are telling. I am not sure I am fully buying it as told....

 

[AmandaSkis]

Hmmm...what a strange story the 2 'friends' are telling. I am not sure I am fully buying it as told....

I am in the same place as you, katydid. How many cases have we read here on WS where friends turned out not to be friends? And the article calls them "acquaintances," not even friends.

 

[BloodHoundSleuther]

Update http://www.suwanneedemocrat.com/new...cle_16b0eb3a-b7eb-11e6-a45f-8776a39c6b31.html

LIVE OAK — The search continues for a missing Live Oak man who went missing early morning Friday, Nov. 25, in Benson, North Carolina.

Christopher Cole Thomas, 22, is a white male, around 6’1” tall, weighs about 230 lbs., with brown/blonde hair and blue eyes. He was last seen wearing a red T-shirt, black pants and a black “Carhartt” jacket.

Thomas was reported missing to the Benson Police Department by two acquaintances. They told police they were traveling on Interstate 40, heading to Durham, and got off the interstate in Benson.

As they were driving through a residential area, the driver, Thomas, suddenly stopped his vehicle, jumped out and ran away, the report states.

The passengers tried to find him, but were unable to. At 3 a.m. they reported Thomas missing, the report states.

Over the last several days, extensive efforts have been made by the Benson Police Department to contact and/or locate Thomas. There have been no confirmed sighting of him, though, and he has not contacted his acquaintances, employer or family.

Thomas was working around of Pine Island, Minnesota, when he unexpectedly travelled to North Carolina.

The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation is currently investigating the case.

Anyone with any knowledge of Thomas’ whereabouts should contact chief Kenneth Edwards or captain Greg Percy at the Benson Police Department at 919-894-2091 or email [email protected].

 

[swanniee11]

someone needs to get his car that he jumped out of and go over it with a fine tooth comb. I would also go back to where he lived and search there. IMO

 

[BlkMtnGirl]

A couple of things are really jumping out at me:
- he stopped the vehicle and jumped out, so he was driving. If he drove his vehicle to NC, especially that far east, that would be a long drive from Arizona.
- Cole has had an awful lot of jobs, all over the country.

Any idea where the acquaintances are from?

 

[los2188]

A FLORIDA FATHER IS IN JOHNSTON COUNTY TO SEARCH FOR MISSING SON

A Florida father has spent the last week and a half in North Carolina searching for his missing son.

The son, 22-year-old Christopher Cole Thomas, has been missing for 12 days and disappeared under unusual circumstances.

http://abc11.com/news/florida-father-in-benson-to-search-for-missing-son/1644582/​

 

[FindHG]

Last seen wearing, unlike the picture in blue,

According to a report by Tim Pulliam, ABC 11 News, speaking with Cole's dad, and showing his little brother asking for his return,

http://abc11.com/news/florida-father-in-benson-to-search-for-missing-son/1644582/

Red shirt
Black Pants
Dark Jacket

Dad believes he's alive and will keep looking. FBI and others on the case. Hoping somebody seeing report may have seen Cole Thomas, 22, about 200 lbs and 6,1.

Why would he run out near a police station and not go there? How could security cams around there have not picked up the car's occupants, for a better timeline, to cut through that bizarre story, it seems to me, doesn't sound credible?

 

[Vail]

OK so from this we know he was definitely in NC.Cole was caught on security cameras in a convenience store. It doesn't clarify the car situation or what his previous job in MN has to do with it.

A FLORIDA FATHER IS IN JOHNSTON COUNTY TO SEARCH FOR MISSING SON

http://abc11.com/news/florida-father-in-benson-to-search-for-missing-son/1644582/​

 

[AmandaSkis]

Why did the friends go to the police at 3am after Cole allegedly took off? If my friend ran off, I don't think I'd go right to the police.

Unless my friend was high on hallucinogenic drugs and waving a gun around. Then I'd go to the police.

But otherwise, I can't see going to the police right away.

Hmmm...although...if the friends' story is true, then maybe Cole took off with the keys. That might explain why the friends searched for Cole, then went to the police.

 

[BlkMtnGirl]

A really long time ago, a male friend of mine and his friends decided to try to buy pot while they were at the beach on vacation. Long story short, they lost all their money to a couple of con artists. They went to the police to report a "theft." The cops laughed at them, told them it sounded like a drug deal gone bad, and they needed to forget about it before they got charged with making a false report. I can't quite sort it out in my mind, but for some reason that story came to me when reading this one.

 

[calo44]

Why did the friends go to the police at 3am after Cole allegedly took off? If my friend ran off, I don't think I'd go right to the police.

Unless my friend was high on hallucinogenic drugs and waving a gun around. Then I'd go to the police.

But otherwise, I can't see going to the police right away.

Hmmm...although...if the friends' story is true, then maybe Cole took off with the keys. That might explain why the friends searched for Cole, then went to the police.

Is anyone really sure the two other guys were his friends? When I first read the story, it sounded like they had kidnapped him and he had a chance to break free. Jmo, from the limited info I could find on this bizarre story

 

[AmandaSkis]

Is anyone really sure the two other guys were his friends? When I first read the story, it sounded like they had kidnapped him and he had a chance to break free. Jmo, from the limited info I could find on this bizarre story

My issue with the "breaking free" story is why would the two acquaintances then go to the police so quickly? If I had kidnapped someone, I certainly wouldn't go to the police to report him missing, especially with such a strange story.

I'm thinking he was either tripping on drugs OR he was never in Benson and was killed somewhere else.

 

[thesaint]

I'm thinking he was either tripping on drugs OR he was never in Benson and was killed somewhere else.

on page 2 of this thread, half-way down, there's a picture of Cole from a convenience store security camera in NC. As noted above, Cole's wearing a blue shirt instead of a red t-shirt and no black carhartt, as initially reported.

 

[Tabirey]

So, after reading Cole's thread tonight, I realized what was bugging me about this case . I believe my daughter and I may have seen Cole after his disappearance. I've called and given LE the information and have offered the family any help they need as I'm less than 10 mins from where they are staying here to search for Cole. I really, really hope it was Cole that we saw! My heart is breaking for the family and I could kick myself for not connecting things sooner! I've invited the family to join the forum for support, resources and all of your brilliant minds in helping to find him.

 

[Watcher4guilty]

What kind of Work did he do and what were his connections to NC since he lived in FL and Worked half way across the Country?

 

[LisaWL7TR]

Is anyone really sure the two other guys were his friends? When I first read the story, it sounded like they had kidnapped him and he had a chance to break free. Jmo, from the limited info I could find on this bizarre story

Interesting.

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[LisaWL7TR]

Sorry if this has been determined and I missed it.

Do we know whose car and who was driving.



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[LostOldUserName]

What kind of Work did he do and what were his connections to NC since he lived in FL and Worked half way across the Country?

His FB page says he is an electrical apprentice. He may be working for a company that travels across the US doing different jobs. I only recognize this type of work because hubby used to travel as a Millwright.

 

[stefaniejanine]

Is the convenience store footage from before or after he went missing? Sorry if I missed it up thread.

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[LostOldUserName]

Is the convenience store footage from before or after he went missing? Sorry if I missed it up thread.

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The Caption under the photo says "Benson Police released the last known photos of Cole Thomas, taken from a security camera the night he was reported missing. (Benson Police Department)"