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The Mysterious Disappearance of Yuba County 5 - Part I · Murder Files Unsealed

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  Speaker 1: The Uber County five refers to a group of young
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  men from Yuba County, California, who each had mild intellectual
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  disabilities or psychiatric conditions. They were reported missing following their
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  attendance at a college basketball game at California State University,
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  Chico on the evening of February twenty fourth, nineteen seventy eight.
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  Four members of the group, Bill Stirling, aged twenty nine,
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  Jack Hewitt, age twenty four, Ted Weyer, aged thirty two,
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  and Jack Madruger, age thirty were subsequently discovered deceased, while
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  the fifth member, Gary Matthias, age twenty five, remains unaccounted for.
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  Days after their disappearance, the group's vehicle, and nineteen sixty
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  nine Mercury Montego registered to Madruga, was located abandoned in
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  a secluded area of Plumas National Forest, situated on a
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  high mountain dirt road that was significantly off their intended
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  route back to Yuba County. Investigators were unable to ascertain
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  the reasons for the vehicle's abandonment, as it was in
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  good working condition and could have been easily extricated from
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  the snow in which it was lodged. At that time,
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  no evidence regarding the whereabouts of the men was uncovered.
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  Following the melting of snow in June nineteen seventy eight,
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  the remains of four men were uncovered. Ted Wire was
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  located in a US Forest Service trailer approximately twelve miles
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  north of the vehicle. The remains of Jack Madruger, Bill Sterling,
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  and Jackie Hewitt were reduced to bones due to scavenging animals. However,
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  it appeared that Wire had survived for as long as
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  three months after the last sighting of the group, ultimately
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  succumbing to starvation despite the presence of sufficient food and
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  heating supplies nearby. Notably, Via was found without his shoes,
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  while investigators discovered Matthias's own shoes within the US Forest
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  Service trailer, indicating that Matthias may have also endured for
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  a period beyond the group's final observation. Subsequently, a local
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  individual came forward asserting that he had spent the same
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  night in his vehicle not far from the location where
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  the mercury was discovered. The witness informed the authorities that
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  he had seen and heard individuals near his car that night,
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  and had called for assistance on two occasions, only to
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  have them fall silent and extinguish their flashlights. This account,
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  coupled with the significant distance between the vehicle and the
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  sight of the bodies, has raised suspicions regarding the possibility
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  of foul play disappearance. On February twenty fifth, the Gaters
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  were scheduled to participate in their inaugural match of a
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  week long tournament organized by the Special alt Olympics, with
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  the victors receiving a complimentary week in Los Angeles. The
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  five individuals had made preparations the previous evening, with some
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  even laying out their uniforms and requesting their parents to
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  ensure they woke up on time. They opted to travel
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  to Chico that same night to support the UC Davis
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  basketball team in an away game against Chico State. Madruga,
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  the sole member of the group aside from Matthias, who
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  possessed a driver's license, drove the group fifty miles north
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  to the Chico State campus in his turquoise in white
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  nineteen sixty nine Mercury Montego. The men donned only light
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  jackets to combat the cool temperatures typical of the Upper
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  Sacramento Valley during that time of year. Following the victory
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  of the Davis team, the group re entered Madruga's vehicle
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  and traveled a brief distance from Chico State to Bear's Market,
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  located in downtown Chico. There, they purchased various snacks, sodas,
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  and cartons of milk. This occurred shortly before the store's
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  ten p m. Closing time. The clerk later recalled the men,
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  expressing her irritation at the large group that had entered,
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  which delayed her from commencing the closing procedures for the evening.
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  After that moment, none of the men were seen alive again.
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  Some parents remained awake at home waiting for their son's return.
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  When morning arrived and they had not returned, the police
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  were alerted. Investigation authorities in Butte and Euber Counties initiated
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  a search along the path taken by the individuals towards Chico,
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  although no evidence of their presence was discovered initially. Several
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  days later, a ranger from Plumus National Forest informed investigators
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  that he had observed the mercury parked in the forest
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  along Ouraville Quincy Road on February twenty fifth. At that moment,
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  he did not deem it noteworthy as numerous locals frequently
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  traveled that route into the Sierra Nevada during winter weekends
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  for cross country skiing on the vast trail network. However,
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  after reviewing the missing person's bulletin, he recognized the vehicle
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  and guided the deputies to its location on February twenty
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  eighth discovery of the car. The findings within the vehicle
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  indicated that the individuals had occupied it during the interval
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  between their last sighting and the moment it was left behind.
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  Among the items discovered were empty wrappers and containers from
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  food and beverages acquired at a store in Chico, as
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  well as programs from the basketball game they had attended,
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  and a meticulously folded road map of California. Nevertheless,