I hope no one takes this the wrong way but I'm not sure why most unsolved disappearances are equated to a murder..there are other things like coercion, kidnapping, abductions, drugs, human trafficking, freak accidents, suicide etc which exist in the world...and we have no body as of yet. How has it been confirmed as homicide and who killed him ?
I want to be clear upfront- this isn't meant to be argumentative. You're right to point out that there are many possible explanations in this case, some of which may be more likely than others. But at the end of so many of those possibilities- accidental overdose, trafficking, coercion- the outcome often circles back to the same tragic end: some degree of death. That doesn't negate alternate theories; it just highlights how often they converge on the same result.
With Stephen's case, we have a few undeniable facts. He was separated from his car. He wasn't found near it, nor was his body ever recovered from anywhere along the logical path he might have taken. That alone doesn't prove foul play, but it does rule out several scenarios as unlikely.
For example, in over 15 years, a freak accident- one that doesn't leave a trace, body, or clue - stretches believability. The same goes for suicide. There are multiple lines of reasoning to doubt that outcome, but even if you put those aside, it's rare for a suicide to leave absolutely no trace after this much time.
Drugs? Sure, an accidental overdose is conceivable. But again- where is the body?
Coercion is possible too. Maybe someone talked Stephen into disappearing, isolating himself, staying silent for 15 years. But why? And how? If coercion was the vehicle, it likely fed into something darker like trafficking, forced labor, abuse and those outcomes often end fatally, especially when the person doesn't resurface. It's not uncommon for coercion to be the means of disappearance, not the reason.
And then there's the timeline. Statistically, individuals caught in trafficking rings (particularly males Stephen's age) are not held for 15 years. The average span is closer to 15 months. So if ths was trafficking, the lack of any "return" or body suggests a more permanent outcome.
That's why I come back to the likelihood that Stephen met with foul play, even if it wasn't premeditated. But here's where I think your point deserves more traction: maybe we're too focusd on the why. Maybe it wasn't about motive or revenge or even intent. Maybe it was a tragic series of events- a confrontation, a misstep that led to panic, cover-up, and silence.
This is where Occam's Razor might apply though not to narrow the field to the most sinister suspect, but to suggest that the simplest explanation could be a bad situation that spiraled, followed by people doing everything they could to hide what happened. That may be more plausible than some grand motive or elaborate plan. Maybe the answer lies not in "Who wanted him dead?" but "What happened that made someone desperate to keep it hidden?"
Just thinking out loud really.
