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The Disappearance of Louk Phiangdae · Murder Files Unsealed

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Speaker 1: Welcome to another deep dive. Today. We're tackling a case
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of really baffling one, the disappearance of eleven year old
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book Fionday back in nineteen ninety six. Yeah, we've got well,
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we've got articles, we've got interviews to sort through, a
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whole paper trail. It's really the investigation. The families were
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a deal and all these unanswered questions that just kind
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of hang over the whole case, you know, So we're
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going to try and piece it together, try to figure
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out what happened to look.
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Speaker 2: Well, one of the things that struck me right away
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was that this family had already been through so much hardship.
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I mean, they were low ocean immigrants. Look's father, Boo Long.
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He had been a prisoner of war for thirteen years.
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Can you imagine that.
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Speaker 1: That's incredible.
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Speaker 2: Yeah, the resilience to come back from something like that.
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They come to the US in nineteen eighty eight, you know,
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looking for a new beginning, and they settle in Raymond, Washington.
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It's a small coastal town in nineteen ninety.
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Speaker 1: Okay, so a fresh start, a quiet life.
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Speaker 2: Yeah.
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Speaker 1: Until February sixth, nineteen ninety six, Stormy Tuesday, night, Look vanishes,
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just gone from their home, no trace. It's like something
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out of a movie, right, stormy nights, small town. Yeah, absolutely,
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It's got all the makings of a real mystery.
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Speaker 2: It really does. But what makes this case so perplexing
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is the lack of answers. Like there just aren't any
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clear answers. The police. I mean they did a very
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extensive search, tracking dogs, helicopters, boats, divers. They even searched
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the Willapa River, which runs right through the town.
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Speaker 1: Hold on Willapara River. Yeah, is that important? Like do
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I need a visual here?
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Speaker 2: Yeah? It is, okay, because the river is going to
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come up again when we talk about the theories. Raymond's
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like this quaint town. It's nestled on the Willapa River.
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It's not far from the Washington Coast. It's the kind
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of place where everybody knows everyone. So when something like
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this happens, the disappearance of Look, it really shook the community.
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Speaker 1: Okay, I'm picturing it, small town, river running through it. Yeah,
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and then this just happens right in the middle of
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it all. Yeah, okay, So what do we know about
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the night that Look disappeared? Like what happened leading up
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to it.
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Speaker 2: So Luke had had an argument with his father earlier
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that evening and he'd gone to his room. Later when
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the family went to check on him, he was gone,
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just gone gone. His window was open, but there were
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no signs of forced entry or struggle, so.
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Speaker 1: No sign of anything. He just kind of vanished, like he.
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Speaker 2: Just vanished into thin air, which adds to the mystery.
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And his shoe was found in the bedroom. Okay, and
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we know from reports that he only owned one pair,
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so he didn't.
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Speaker 1: Walk out, right, Nobody walks out on a stormy night
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with just one shoe, one shoe, unless it's Cinderella.
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Speaker 2: I guess right. It's those little details, you know, the shoe,
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the window, the no signs of a struggle. That's what
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really makes you go hmm right. It's these inconsistencies that
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really make this case so fascinating and frustrating at.
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Speaker 1: The same time. So I'm guessing this is where the theory's
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come in.
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Speaker 2: Yeah, we've got four main theories. Ok they were going
2:58
to unpack, each with its own kind of twists and turn.
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Speaker 1: Okay, a lamb on me. Where do we start.
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Speaker 2: Let's start with the one that immediately gripped the community,
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right abduction. There was a report of a suspicious yellow
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car scene parked near the park that night. A witness,
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Bill Wilson, he was one of the first officers on
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the scene, noted a car park there with its lights off.
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Speaker 1: Okay, So, just to be clear, for like a listener,
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yellow car maybe seems random. But why is that something
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the police would focus on?
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Speaker 2: Well, vehicles play a big part in a lot of
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abduction cases.
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Speaker 1: Yeah.
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Speaker 2: Yeah, and remember Looks path to the high school that night,
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where his brother was playing basketball, would have taken him
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right past that park.
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Speaker 1: Okay. So it's not just a random yellow car, right,
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it's a yellow car that could be linked to Looks last.
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Speaker 2: Known movements exactly.
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Speaker 1: Okay, spooky.
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Speaker 2: Yeah, definitely adds another layer to it.
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Speaker 1: All right, So abduction is number one. What else?
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Speaker 2: The second theory, and this is one that's really sensitive,
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involves the possibility of parental involvement.
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Speaker 1: Ooh, that's heavy. Okay, So what led investigators down that path?
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Speaker 2: Well, there were rumors circulating in the community, and there
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were some witness accounts that cast doubt on Luke's father Boolong.
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It's important to note that he did pass a light
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detector test.
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Speaker 1: But there's always a butt, right, right.
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Speaker 2: There was a counselor's report Allegedly Luke's younger brother, Taoluk
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told the counselor that his father had killed Luke.
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Speaker 1: Wow. Okay, but before we jumped to any conclusions, wasn't
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there a language barrier with the family. Could that have
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played a role in how this information was interpreted?
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Speaker 2: You're hitting on a really crucial point, and that is
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that the communication with the family was reportedly difficult, and
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this undoubtedly added to the complexity of the investigation.
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Speaker 1: I can imagine that must have been so frustrating, you know,
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for everybody involved, for the family, for.
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Speaker 2: The investigator, absolutely trying to piece together a story when
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you can't understand each other. It's like solving a puzzle
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with missing pieces. You just you can't get a clear picture.
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Speaker 1: Right. Okay, so we've got abduction, possible parental involvement. What
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are the other two theories?
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Speaker 2: Well, given that look lives so close to the Willapa River,
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accidental drowning was a possibility, especially considering the stormy weather.
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Speaker 1: Okay, but didn't you say they searched the river.
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Speaker 2: Yes, they did extensively, but some factors do support this theory.
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We know Luke couldn't swim and he was afraid of water. Yeah,
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so it makes sense.
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Speaker 1: Yeah, okay, I mean that definitely adds a layer of
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plausibility there. But if he fell in, wouldn't they have
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found his body?
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Speaker 2: Well that's where it gets complicated. Bodies typically resurface in
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the Willipa River.
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Speaker 1: Okay.
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Speaker 2: The fact that his was never recovered really just adds
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to the mystery.
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Speaker 1: Okay, so we've got possible abduction, We've got parental involvement,
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We've got this like unsettling possibility of accidental drowning. What's
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the last one?
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Speaker 2: The last theory, and this one was considered less likely
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by investigators, is that Look ran away?
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Speaker 1: But you said he left without his shoes. Yeah, on
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a dormy night. Well it doesn't really sound planned, does it.
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Speaker 2: Yeah, and he didn't pack anything. He left behind his
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coin collection.
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Speaker 1: Yeah, things a kid would normally take if they were
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running away.
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Speaker 2: Right, it doesn't add up unless there.
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Speaker 1: Was something going on at school or at home that
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would make you want to run away. I don't know.
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Speaker 2: Well, there is one detail, and it's a real heart tugger.
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Look loved Valentine's Day. He was actually planning on buying
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cards for his entire class. Oh does that sound like
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a kid who's going to run away right before?
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Speaker 1: Yeah, that's a detail that sticks with you. It does
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make you think. Okay, so you've got these four possible scenarios,
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each with its own set of strengths and weaknesses, but
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none of them really seem to fully explain what happens exactly.
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So what happens next? Do the police have any leads,
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any breakthroughs.
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Speaker 2: Unfortunately, despite their best efforts, the investigations stalled, leads dried up,
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and no conclusive evidence ever surfaced.
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Speaker 1: So the family's just left with no answers.
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Speaker 2: It's heartbreaking. The Fiande family, the police, the entire community
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all left grappling with this devastating mystery. The case went cold,
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but the questions lingered.
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Speaker 1: Yeah, it's hard to imagine that anguish. Yeah, like not knowing,
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just that weight of uncertainty hanging over them all those years.
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Speaker 2: Yeah, and it brings up something we touched on earlier,
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that communication barrier. Right, imagine that you can't understand or
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be understood by the people who are trying to help
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you find your kid. I mean, it's just another layer
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of heartbreak on top of an already tragic situation.
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Speaker 1: It really is. You know, reading through these articles, it
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seems like a lot of the focus, especially early on,
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was on Luke's father. Yeah, it seemed like a lot
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of suspicion was kind of revolving around him.
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Speaker 2: Yeah, and you know, it points to a bigger issue
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that we see in missing persons cases. Especially when you've
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got these cultural differences, it's so easy for misunderstandings to happen,
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and those misunderstandings they can get amplified in the media
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and in the community.
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Speaker 1: So those ripple effect right one, one little miscommunication can
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lead to like a wave of suspicion and speculation exactly.
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Speaker 2: And in a small town like Raymond, where everybody knows everybody,
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those ripples they're felt even more strongly. You know, this family,
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they're already dealing with the pain of losing your son,
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and then to have that compounded by like suspicion and
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scrutiny from their community. I mean, it's just awful.
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Speaker 1: It makes you wonder if that pressure, that feeling of
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constantly being watched and judged, maybe it prevented people from
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coming forward with information. Oh absolutely, maybe they were afraid
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of saying the wrong thing, being misunderstood, or or even
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like ostracized.
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Speaker 2: Yeah, fear and mistrust, those are really powerful things, and
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they can really impact an investigation. You know, people hesitate
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to share what they know, even if it's something that
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could be the key to solving the case.
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Speaker 1: Right, So we've talked about the family, the community, what
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about the police, or to make any mistakes, miss any opportunities.
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I mean, it's easy to look back and second guess.
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Speaker 2: But yeah, hindsight's always twenty twenty, right, But there's some
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things that looking back you think, hmm, maybe it could
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have been handled differently. The language barrier, for instance, I mean,
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having a lotion speaker from the beginning, someone who could
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build that rapport with the family and just ensure that
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the communication was clear. I mean that could make a
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huge difference.
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Speaker 1: It's like trying to build a house on like a
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shaky foundation. Yeah, Now, if you don't have that solid communication,
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the whole thing becomes unstable.
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Speaker 2: Exactly, and that instability can impact everything, you know, how
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information is gathered, you know, building trust with witnesses, even
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just interpreting evidence.
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Speaker 1: Right, right, and speaking of evidence, let's go back to
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those four theories. Okay, we've got abduction, we've got parental involvement,
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accidental drowning, and running away. But as we said, none
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of them really fit perfectly. No, each one's got a
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crack in it.
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Speaker 2: Well, that's how it is with these complicated cases. You
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have these pieces, these clues, but they just don't quite
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form a whole picture. And the longer it goes on,
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the more those pieces kind of fade. You know.
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Speaker 1: It's almost like time itself becomes part of the mystery. Yeah,
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like blurring the lines between what we know and what
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we think we know. Memories get hazy, witnesses might misremember details,
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evidence can disappear. It's a mess.
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Speaker 2: Yeah, it's like this constant battle against the truth, just eroding. Right,
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And that's one of the toughest things about cold cases.
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Speaker 1: So where does that leave us. We've got all these theories,
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all these possibilities, but how do we make sense of it?
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Speaker 2: Well, despite all the challenges, it's important to remember that
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even things that seem small or insignificant, they can be
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incredibly valuable. Sometimes it's the overlooked stuff that holds the
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key to the truth.
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Speaker 1: So we got to look closely at everything, even the
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stuff that seems irrelevant exactly.
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Speaker 2: And that's what we're trying to do with these deep dives.
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Revisit the material, examine the evidence, look at the theories,
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and hopefully put together a better picture of what could
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have happened.
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Speaker 1: Okay, let's do it. Let's look at each of the
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those theories individually, see what holds up, what falls apart.
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We've already talked about the yellow car, we talked about
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the suscussion surrounding Luke's father, But what about drowning. Okay,
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what evidence is there to support that theory.
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Speaker 2: Well, like we said, look, couldn't swim, right, he was
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afraid of water. And the fact that his body was
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never found in the river, that's important too.
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Speaker 1: You said bodies usually resurface.
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Speaker 2: They do, but there are exceptions, okay, like what, Well,
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a body could get snagged on something underwater, you know,
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like a branch or some other object. Oh okay, it
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might not come back up, or you know, if the
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currents are strong, especially with the storm, the body could
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have been swept downstream.
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Speaker 1: Okay, So even though they searched, it's possible he drowned
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and they just didn't find him.
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Speaker 2: Exactly, And There's one more thing that makes this theory
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a little more complicated. The eyewitness account.
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Speaker 1: Wait, the eyewitness Yeah you mean Debbie Boone, the woman
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who said she saw a look running across the bridge.
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How does that fit in with the drowning theory.
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Speaker 2: Well, her account, if it's accurate, puts look heading towards
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town just minutes before he disappeared. And remember that bridge
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is the only way to get from Riverdale, where the
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Fiangays lived, into Raymond.
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Speaker 1: So if he was on that bridge, he had to
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be going somewhere specific.
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Speaker 2: Yeah, and that raises more questions. Where was he going,
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who was he going to meet? And how did he
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just vanish after being seen on the bridge.
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Speaker 1: It's like this whole other path opens up. We're focused
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on the river, and now this eyewitness account takes us
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somewhere else.
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Speaker 2: Right, It's a really important detail.
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Speaker 1: Yeah, Okay, So where could he have been going that night?
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Speaker 2: Mm hmm.
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Speaker 1: Were there any places he frequented? Yeah? Any friends he
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could have been meeting up with.
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Speaker 2: There are a few places that come up. He could
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have been going to the high school where his brother
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was playing basketball.
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Speaker 1: So maybe he changed his mind decided to go to
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the game. After all, even after the argument.
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Speaker 2: Possibly, or he could have been going to the Willappa Hotel. Okay,
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at the time, it housed a pretty large Lio Ocean
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and Cambodian community, so it might have felt familiar to him,
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you know, maybe a little safer.
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Speaker 1: Yeah, that makes sense. If he was feeling scared or upset,
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maybe he wanted to go to a place that reminded
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him of home.
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Speaker 2: Yeah. And there's also the possibility that he was going
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to his friend MoU's house. They were close, and it's
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possible he might have felt safe there.
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Speaker 1: But here's the thing that I don't get. If he
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was going to any of those places, the high school,
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the hotel, his friend's house, why wouldn't he have made it.
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Why hasn't anybody come forward to say they saw him there?
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Speaker 2: That is the question, the one that investigators have been
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trying to answer for years. And there's another possibility, and
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this one's pretty interesting. Okay, hit me, what if he
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wasn't going to meet someone he knew? Okay, what if
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he was lured.
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Speaker 1: There, lurd like by someone in that yellow car.
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Speaker 2: It's definitely a chilling thought. Yeah, but it's something we
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can't rule out. Maybe someone gained his trust, you know,
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by pretending to be friendly or offering him something, which
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brings us right back to that yellow car.
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Speaker 1: Yeah, like a ghost that just keeps popping up. It's there,
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then it's not. We have a witness who saw it,
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but that's it. No license plate, no description to the driver.
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Speaker 2: Ugh, I know. It's so frustrating, and it just shows
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how important even the tiniest details are. If someone had
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noticed anything else about that car, a dent, a sticker, anything, yeah,
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it could have been a huge break in the case.
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Speaker 1: It makes you think about all those what ifs, that
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hot cold cases. Yeah, what if somebody had spoken up?
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What if they'd noticed a tiny detail and said something.
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Speaker 2: Those missed opportunities, they can really make it hard to
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solve these cases, and it shows why public awareness is
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so important. Sometimes the key to cracking one of these
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cases isn't with the investigators, right, it's with everyday people
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and their memories and what they saw.
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Speaker 1: So what you're saying is somebody out there could be
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sitting on a crucial piece of information.
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Speaker 2: Exactly, and they might not even realize it. And that's
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why it's so important to keep these cases in the
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p public eye. To remind people that even after all
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these years, a tiny detail can still make a difference.
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Speaker 1: It's like we're all detectives in a way, piecing together
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the fragments of Luke's story, hoping to find the missing
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piece that makes it all make sense.
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Speaker 2: Yeah, you put it perfectly. It's a collective effort, this
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search for truth and justice that goes beyond time and
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all that.
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Speaker 1: It's crazy to think someone listening right now could hold
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the key to all of this. They might not even
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know it.
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Speaker 2: You know, it happens, really does. A little memory, a detail,
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something you just kind of dismissed at the time, could
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be crucial.
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Speaker 1: Yeah, So if you're out there and anything anything it
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all comes to mind about look or that night February sixth,
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nineteen ninety six in Raymond, Washington, don't hesitate contact the authorities.
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Speaker 2: No detail is too small. Could be something you saw,
15:48
something you heard, even just like a gut feeling you had,
15:51
if something felt off, it could be important.
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Speaker 1: It's so easy to get caught up in the theories and
15:55
the evidence and all that, but this is about a
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real person, a kid who vanished, and his family has
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been living with this this horrible not knowing for decades.
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Speaker 2: Yeah, and it makes you think about the real cost
16:08
of these mysteries, you know, the human cost. The Fiande
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family deserves answers.
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Speaker 1: They do. And speaking of the family, it's so sad
16:17
that recent efforts to kind of revisit the case have
16:21
been hit by more loss. Look's parents and his younger brother, Robert,
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they've all passed away.
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Speaker 2: It's it's heartbreaking, it really is, how much time has passed.
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But even though they're gone, their need for answers that
16:34
doesn't go away. The case is still open. There's always
16:37
hope that something new will turn up, and.
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Speaker 1: That's where organizations like the National Center for Missing and
16:41
Exploited Children and CMAC come in. They've looked at the
16:45
case and they've made recommendations like reinterviewing family members, but
16:49
with a lie she speaker this time.
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Speaker 2: Yeah, which is a good step. Hopefully it leads to something.
16:54
You know, even if we can't bring Look back, maybe
16:56
we can bring some peace to those he left behind,
16:58
some closure.
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Speaker 1: You know. I keep coming back to that detail about
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Look loving Valentine's Day. It's such a clear picture, right,
17:04
just a normal kid excited for a holiday, and then
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he's just gone.
17:08
Speaker 2: It's those little things, those details, that make these cases
17:11
hit home. Reminds you that behind all the headlines and theories,
17:15
there's a person, a life, and it just stops.
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Speaker 1: It does makes you wonder what would he be doing now?
17:23
What would his life be like if that night had
17:25
never happened.
17:27
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's a question we probably won't ever get an
17:29
answer to, but we keep his story alive. We keep looking.
17:33
Speaker 1: That's what it's all about, right, That's what these deep
17:36
dives are for exploring, sifting through the evidence, and never
17:40
giving up hope, even when it seems like there's nowhere left.
17:43
Speaker 2: To look exactly. We might never know for sure what
17:47
happened to Look, but we can keep asking the questions,
17:50
learn from what happened, and keep fighting for those who
17:52
have vanished.
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Speaker 1: So as we wrap up, we'll leave you with this,
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what do you think happened to Look? Which scenario feels
17:58
right to you?
18:00
Speaker 2: Have any information, even if it seems small, Please reach
18:02
out to the Raymond Police Department. It could be the
18:05
missing piece, the thing that finally closes this case.
18:08
Speaker 1: Look's story is a powerful reminder that every missing person matters.
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They all deserve our attention, our empathy, let's keep talking
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about them, keep the hope alive, never forget