True Crime with Kendall Rae - The Extremely Suspicious Death of Alonzo Brooks – Someone Knows Something

Episode Date: June 8, 2023

On April 3rd, 2004, 23-year-old Alonzo Brooks went out to a party in Linn County, Kansas. When Brooks didn’t return home that night, friends and family got nervous and got authorities involved. After a search by police and the FBI, his family organized a volunteer-led search team, and they were able to locate his body nearby. His cause of death is still indeterminate. Donate to NCMEC through my campaign! https://give.missingkids.org/campaign/kendall-rae/c438796 This episode is sponsored by: Nutrafol - Promo code: KENDALLRAE Check out Kendall's other podcasts: The Sesh & Mile Higher Follow Kendall! YouTube Twitter Instagram Facebook Mile Higher Zoo REQUESTS: General case suggestion form: https://bit.ly/32kwPly Form for people directly related/ close to the victim: https://bit.ly/3KqMZLj Discord: https://discord.com/invite/an4stY9BCN CONTACT: For Business Inquiries - [e-mail]

This episode is brought to you by Sold the Genero. As Sold the Genero, touch isn't just for screens. Physical connection is so essential to how we communicate, it's infused in everything we offer. Since so irresistible, PDA is guaranteed. Textures are so luscious, skin is huggable. Get into a Sold the Genero state of mind. Receive 10% off on your first order on Sold the Genero.com.

Plus free shipping with the code Soldagenero10. Hey everyone, welcome back to my channel. Today we're going to be talking about a case that I first saw on the reboot of Unsolved Mysteries, which was on Netflix. I'm sure a lot of you have seen it. As many of you know, Unsolved Mysteries is an older show that was, you know, kind of reimagined and brought back on Netflix. And personally, I think it's incredibly well done. I think they did such a fantastic job of telling these stories in the right way.

They didn't have some annoying, salacious, host, you know, they weren't grasping for every bit of drama in the situation. They kept it very real, and what I really liked about it is for the most part, I think, almost all of it. They really let the victims family members tell their story. A lot of the cases on that show really peaked my interest, made me want to look into them more, but there was one in particular that just stayed with me. I don't know what it was about it. This case is intriguing, it's incredibly frustrating, but it's also just so sad. Today we're gonna be talking about Alonzo Brooks. His family was featured in the Unself Mysteries episode,

and I just really felt for them. There was something about these people that seems incredibly genuine, warm, real, and how open they were about the pain they've been through was really inspiring to me. Like, it's not easy for these families to get on these shows and talk about the worst thing that has ever happened to them in most cases. They are really looking for more awareness on their case. Obviously the Unsolved Mysteries episode was huge for them, but things have quieted down a little bit. However, there have been updates since that has come out and I will go over all of that. But let's go ahead and jump into the case.

So this is Alonzo Tyree Brooks. He was born on May 19th, 1980, and to pick a Kansas to his parents Billy Brooks senior and Maria Ramirez. And Alonzo was the youngest of five kids. He had three older sisters, Demetria, Felicia, and Esperanza, and he also had an older brother, Billy Jr., who he was very close with. Alonzo had a lot of friends. He had a lot of family, he was close with as well, and most of them actually called him so. That was his nickname. Eventually, Maria married Alonzo's stepfather, whose name is Stort Porter, and he had kids

of his own. And they all actually got along really, really well. Alonzo loved his step siblings and his regular siblings and they were one big happy family. There really wasn't anyone that Alonzo didn't get along with according to his family. He was such a friendly guy, such a low-key dude and really never caused drummer issues with people. He just didn't have enemies.

He lost anybody, everybody. He was a real friendly, very friendly guy. He was just my baby, I stood alone, I was just my baby. So Zo had a lot of friends, but there was one friend that he considered his best friend, and that was Rodney English, and they had been friends for a really long time.

They grew up together, they considered each other brothers, always there for each other. They spent a lot of their childhood running around outside, building bike ramps and playing games. One of their favorite running around outside, building bike ramps, and playing games. One of their favorite things to do was climb to the top of the compost pile and try to play king of the hill, which is where you knock the other person down and try to get to the top first. Zo was also a natural athlete. His favorite sport to play was football, and he made several of his closest friends while playing. He was a very athletic guy.

He also liked basketball and karate. So oftentimes as the baby of the family, you aren't able to do the things that your older siblings are able to do. And that was the case with Alonzo and his siblings. Sometimes Alonzo would feel a little left out, but his mom would always make sure to give him extra attention and make sure

he felt really cared for and involved, even though he couldn't always do everything that they could do. And Alonzo's older brother, Billy, thought that his mom coddled him a little bit too much. His main reasoning for that was because he knew the world could be tough, and he wanted his brother to be prepared for anything.

But whenever the two of them were rough housing, his mother would step in and tell them to stop. She would never want Alonzo to get hurt. And Billy kind of thought that was coddling. When he was a teenager, Zo was very polite. And he even cared about his appearance quite a bit. His sisters would actually make fun of him for ironing his pants before wearing them.

Alonzo's favorite color was red. And most of his clothes were red and black. And he also was known for wearing beanies. So after he graduated from Topeka High School, he and his mother decided to move to Gardner, Kansas, which is quite a bit different than Topeka. It's a lot more rule, and it was a change for them. Alonzo got a job working for his stepfather,

actually, at a maintenance company, and he liked it, okay. But the change from Topeka to Gardner is a big one. Topeka is the state capital, you know. It has plenty of things to do and a population of over 125,000 people, but Gardner is a small town. In 2004, the population was only 13,000 in one. So it was a big adjustment for Alonzo, but he was open to it. You know, the transition was a struggle, but he actually could see himself becoming a farmer one day, living on some land,

raising animals. He actually was really into the idea of that lifestyle. I am so excited about today's sponsor because I have been using their product and paying for it on my own for about eight months now and I love it. And that product is NutriFull. Did you know that hair thinning will happen to approximately one and two women? And if you were among them, just know you're not alone.

Thinning is normal and NutriFull helps women address it from within with science-backed supplements. I started taking NutriFull after I had my baby, and if you've had a baby, you may know that all your hormones are whacked out, and so I started their postpartum line, and it helped me, and my hair is now growing back thicker than it ever has, which is amazing.

If you're tired of dealing with thinning hair, NutriFull is here to help. It's the number one dermatologist recommended hair growth supplement and clinically shown to improve visible thickness and strength. Herald. Herald. Herald. Herald. Herald. Herald. Herald. Herald. Herald.

Herald. Herald. Herald. Herald. Herald. Herald. Herald. Herald.

Herald. Herald. Herald. Herald. Herald. Herald. Herald. Herald. Herald. Herald. Herald. Herald. All you got to do is go to nuchefull.com and take their hair health wellness quiz and identify causes of your thinning hair.

Nuchefull will give you a personalized plan for better hair growth through their whole body health approach. And in a clinical study, 86% of women reported improved hair growth after taking nuchefull women's hair growth supplement for six months. So take the first step to visibly thicker, healthier hair. For a limited time, nuchefull is offering our listeners $10 off your first month subscription and free shipping when you go to Neutral.com and enter promo code Candle Ray. Find out why over 4,000 haircare professionals recommend Neutral for healthier hair.

Neutral.com spelled N-U-T-R-A-F-O-L. .com promo code Candle Ray. That's Neutral.com promo code Kendal Ray. Glanzel also had a close group of friends and garner that he would spend most of his, you know, off time weekends with. They would go to a lot of parties together, little kickbacks and just hang out. So one Saturday, April 3rd, 2004, one of his friends heard that there was gonna be a party in another town and It was a little ways away and it was supposed to be for a guy who was going into the military It was kind of a send-off for him but people from a bunch of different towns were gonna be at this party

Alonza was the oldest friend in the group and he was also the only Black friend in the group. This isn't something that his friends or Alonzo really ever thought about, but unfortunately, it really matters in this case. Because not only was he the only black person in this group of friends, he was also one of maybe three black people that were at this party they were going to. I've heard mixed things, I've heard he was the only one. I've heard there were two other people there as well.

I'm not sure. But it was a very sketchy situation because this town they were going to was known for racism. Alonzo wasn't a huge partier by any means. He hadn't been to that many parties in his young life, but he decided that he really wanted to have a good time at this party and go all out. So the group of friends meets at Alonzo's house and they all talk about how they're gonna get there, who's gonna drive whatever. So was all ready to go, he was pumped to go, he was wearing jeans, a t-shirt, a sweater, and a skull hat. And he also wore a pair of boots and he wore them quite often and

normally he would wear them with two socks to make them fit, you know, a little better. And he also had a hurt ankle from playing basketball. So he had kind of a slight limp going on and he ended up rolling one of his socks down to, you know, create more support around his ankle. Before he left, he gave his mom a kiss and a hug goodbye and he told her he gave his mom a kiss and a hug goodbye and he told her he would see her later that night. And then, zo, drove to the party with his friend, Justin, and then the other guys followed behind

in a different car. Now, this party was nearly 50 miles away at a farmhouse, which was pretty creepy, outside of the Lissine area in Lynn County. This is an East Central Kansas and it has a population of barely over 1,000 at the time. So Lassine makes Gardener look like a big city in comparison. So as they're going, they're driving down all these

random country backgrounds that they had never heard of or been on before. And Justin was driving. Alonzo is just relaxing in the passenger seat. But basically, they were going to the middle of nowhere for this party. When they finally got there, the first thing they noticed was how long the driveway was. It doesn't look like it in the photos, but the driveway was actually decently long. They had to go quite a ways to get to the house.

And this farmhouse is surrounded by woods and fields, and there's a small creek running along one side of it called middle creek and this creek branches off into two other directions as they walked up a few people were just standing outside the house drinking and whatever and Alonzo walked up to them and kind of made his presence known by saying who wants a beer? Justin actually remembered this being a little out of character for Alonzo because he was a pretty reserved shy guy And he didn't know a lot of people at this party But for some reason that night Alonzo just seemed in a really good mood and really wanted to party a little while later The rest of their friends arrived and they realized they were probably the only ones from Gardner at this party Many of the other people at the party seemed to be part of a tight knit group who had probably been born and raised together

Out in the country and a lot of them were dressed in boots, cowboy hats It wasn't those normal crowd, but like I said he really got along with anybody Those friends estimated that there was about 30 to 50 people at the party But as investigators have looked a little more into it It could have been as many as 100 that came through and most of the people at the party, but as investigators have looked a little more into it, it could have been as many as 100 that came through and most of the people at the party were on the younger side like 16 17 Alonzo was probably one of the oldest ones there at 23 and in most ways it was just a typical party There was music dancing and you know people gathered around different tables playing drinking games like flip cup and card games and

Nearly everyone at the party was drinking some were also smoking weed and right away along to wanted to get in on the action So he started playing a drinking game as soon as he got there and all of his friends really noticed that that particular night He seemed to be having such a great time. He was very outgoing which Wasn't that normal for him. I mean, he was friendly with people. He was social, but he's a little bit more reserved in the way he went about it. So they just thought, wow, he really wants

to have a good time tonight, or he's in a great mood or something. At one point, those friend Daniel Fune found him in the kitchen, and they took a few shots together. After they took their shot, Daniel left briefly to talk to someone else and it came back later and Alonzo was in a fight with someone. Not physically, but he and this other guy were yelling at each other. And to Daniel, it looked like things were close to getting physical so he decided

to step in and break it up. And in the Unsolved Mysteries, Justin talks about how he believes that that fight was over Alonzo's skin color. He said in their group of friends, it was never something that they thought about or was never an issue. But in this area in the scene, there was a lot of racist people. But Alonzo didn't seem too bothered by it, honestly.

He decided to let it roll off his back. He wasn't going to let anyone else ruin his night. He was there to have a good time. So his friend Daniel stayed at the party with him for about another hour until they decided to go to a different party. He got a ride to his other party and they left Alonzo there. Before he left, he said goodbye to Alonzo and Justin, his other friend was still there with him so it wasn't completely alone. The plan was for Justin to take Alonzo home,

and around 1am, Justin realized that he was out of cigarettes. So he decided to just go out quickly and get a new pack. So he tells Alonzo, you know, I'll be back in a little bit, I'm just going to go get cigarettes and Alonzo tells him, hey, if you're going, just get me a pack too. And he says you'll see him later and they'll drive home together, that's the plan. Now to head back to town, Justin was supposed to, when he left out of the long driveway, take a left. But instead, he accidentally took a right. He ended up stuck, out on a gravel road.

He'd gone like 30 minutes before realizing it. So he was completely lost with no idea how to get back to this random farmhouse. So Justin calls another friend who's at the party and asks him if he can take Alonzo home and he actually could hear Alonzo in the background kind of giving him shit for getting stuck and you know having him drive home basically was someone he didn't really know. Justin thought you, because he was already 30 minutes out and he was stuck. Once he got unstuck, he was just gonna go straight home, not come back to the party, pick him up, and then go home. But that would have been the smart move.

And this is why the buddy system is so important when going to random parties or parties in general. So the next morning is Sunday April 4th and Maria, his mother gets a call from someone, one of Alonzo's friends, asking if he made it home that night. And she was very surprised that he'd be calling to ask her that. She figured that he was just in his bed like he normally would be. I mean, she said that Alonzo, as much as he would go out and stuff, would always come home and she knew her son would end up at home at the end of the night in his bed.

And if for some reason he wasn't gonna be able to get home, he would let her know. He never stood the night over anyone's house. He always was the type of person that wanted to go home to his own bed. So she went into his room and that's when she noticed that his bed was still made. He clearly hadn't been in the room at all. She called his name in the house thinking that, you know, maybe he had slept in the basement or something,

but got no response and realized that Alonzo was not home. So she told this friend to start calling all the other boys that were at the party that night and had been with Alonzo was not home. So she told this friend to start calling all the other boys that were at the party that night and had been with Alonzo and figure out where he was. And right from the beginning, she was terrified because she just knew that Alonzo would never do this. This was so out of character he would always come home at the end of the night.

He'd find a way. He knew something was wrong because Alonzo didn't call or... That's not like Alonzo. That morning, all of Alonzo's friends that he was with that night We're woken up with frantic calls asking if they had seen him or if they were with him and None of them had seen him since the night before and all of Alonzo's friends said that this was just unlike him You know, he would not have not come home and then not call his mom. They all knew something was very very wrong. So Justin decided to call

the friend who was supposed to take Alonzo home from the party who he had talked to the night before. And when he talked to him, he said that somehow the two of them missed each other at the end of the night that he basically just left without him. I think he thought he already left and he may still have been there and he left without him. But no, insure. He said that he had figured that Alonzo had already left though and got him right with someone else. Maria decided to call Alonzo's lifelong best friend who was not there that night, Rodney. And he was extremely concerned as soon as he heard about what was going on.

He hadn't even met any of the friends and garner that, you know, Alonzo had, but he rushed over as soon as he could, dropped everything to help. So Justin ended up driving Rodney and a few other friends out to this random farmhouse where the party was. Right off the bat, Ronnie was just surprised that they went so far away and that he was left there. They pulled up the house, they all got a really eerie feeling, but they got out anyway and started looking around for any sign of Alonzo or

maybe any of his belongings. At this point, you know, maybe it was possible that Alonzo had gotten really drunk and passed out somewhere on the property and they were hoping they could find him. They ended up walking to a wooded area across the road directly across from the farmhouse and they found just out in the open one of Alonzo's boots and his skull hat. They kept looking and down the road on the same side as the house they ended up finding his other boot and it was just lying along the creek bank and Ronnie immediately thought that it looked like maybe someone had just thrown these items out of their car as they were driving down the road and after they found the second boot a guy that they didn't know drove up on a four-wheeler and told them that they

had to leave they got really sketched out just bad vibes a lot of those friends from Gardener wanted to stay, fight back, and tell this person to fuck off, but Ronnie was really freaked out, and he wanted to get the hell out of there. He knew that this was a mostly white area that was known for racism, and he was the only black guy in the group. So he needed to get to safety. We're not naive, we're not ignorant, to know that there is racial issues out there, and a lot of us in our family because it's a big family have come across it. And this incident really made Alonzo's friends realize the giant mistake that they had made

leaving him at a party in this town. And right away Rodney couldn't help but feel very frustrated with Justin. He was his ride, he was responsible for him, and he should not have left without him. He should have gone back and got him. And Justin felt terrible. I mean, it was a mistake, but there was nothing he could do at this point.

And he kind of justified the situation, saying that, you know, when he left, everything looked fine. Everyone was cool, known as fighting. He thought he was going to be back in a little bit. I mean it's understandable but again this is why it's so important that when you go to parties where you don't know people or in a different town that you have a buddy system and that you stick to that. Whether you're doing a dance to your favorite artist in the office parking lot,

or being guided into Warrior I in the break room before your shift, whether you're running on your Peloton tread at your mom's house while she watches the baby, or counting your breaths on the subway. You're inhaling and long exhale. Peloton is for all of us, wherever we are, whenever we need it. Download the free Peloton app today. Peloton app available through free tier or page description starting at $12.99 per month. From joyful occasions to the unexpected, first Franklin financial makes loans for living,

offering fixed rates and flexible terms on loans up to $15,000. The next time you're looking for some extra cash to help make ends meet, come see the friendly Franklin folks, or visit us at 1FFFC.com to learn more. All in terms of APRs depend on meeting our underwriting and income criteria and may require collateral. First Franklin Financial Corporation is licensed by the Virginia State Corporation Commission CFI-215, Georgia Residential Mortgage Licency 5656, MMLS-NB141654, not available in North Carolina.

So they reported back to Maria, what they saw, about the boots, and about the man who told them to leave. And she immediately went to the police station to report Alonzo missing. But they ended up telling her that she had to wait 48 hours to report him as missing because he was an adult, which is bullshit. But they tried to assure her that he would just show up soon, but she knew that this was not true.

Something was seriously wrong here. That night she called Alonzo Siddling's and she was hysterical. She didn't know what to do, she didn't know who to go to. So Zo's brother Billy told her that he would drive down to LaCene first thing in the morning to find out what was going on. And he and his wife Cindy found out who owned this random farm house. And it turns out that it was a rental property.

So they drove out to the house to have a look around for themselves. When they got there, they got out of the car, went down the driveway, and looked into the windows, and realized that the house was mainly empty. She was really surprised that there had been a party there just a few nights ago. It looked like no one had been there. And as they drove through the town, they noticed right away that they were getting a lot of dirty looks from white residents. They ended up meeting with the sheriff in the town and

he wasn't concerned at all. He said, Alonzo is probably just walking around because that's something people just do. Spend days just walking around. It makes no sense, it's so frustrating. Plus they pointed out that Alonzo wasn't wearing shoes clearly since they had found them. So it's not like he was just out barefoot walking around. They felt pretty hopeless when they left the scene.

All they could do was hope that the sheriff would look more into it. The sheriff sent deputy Paul Fila out to the property where Alonzo was last seen to investigate. Paul checked out the farmhouse, walked along the creek, and searched the surrounding property, but he didn't see any signs of Alonzo or anyone else. When he was done looking, he reported back negative contact. And at that point, the case was turned over to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation. And within just a few days, the KBI organized and launched a full intensive search for lots of Brooks in this area. They brought in their evidence recovery team,

cadaver dogs, and the Kansas Highway Patrol supplied helicopters as well. And investigators meticulously searched the fields and wooded area. They walked down along the creek with the dogs and there was no sign of a Lonzo. Then on April 10th 2004 the FBI ended up getting involved which was really big. And it was only you know a few like a week after a Lonzo had gone missing. So this was really good. And they were immediately under the suspicion that this was a hate crime, and that Lanzo was targeted for being black, for being Hispanic or both.

And the media also started reporting that this could potentially be a hate crime. They reported that Lanzo was being called racial slurs at the party by several attendants. Both Alanzo's mom and the FBI think he was a victim of a hate crime. They say he was one of a few black people at a mostly white party and that they also said

there were racist comments made at that party. And the residents of Lassine were actually really pissed about this coverage. They thought it made Lassine look like a bad place and they said there were people from other towns at the party as well. And that lasine wasn't some horribly racist place after all. But investigators were really worried.

I mean they knew the history in the town and they told their family to try to stay away from lasine as much as possible. And since they couldn't directly help out with the search, their family decided to make t-shirts and flyers with a lot of those pictures that said lost but not forgotten. And then eventually an underwater rescue and recovery team were brought in to help as well. And they were hopeful about this. This was an all-volunteer rescue team that specializes in forensics, dive operations, and evidence recovery. And they use high-tech equipment and the latest technologies in the field. So their family was feeling very positive about it.

You know, they figured if there was a body, Alonzo's body in the water, that they would find it. Now, during their search, they realized that the creek was no deeper than three feet at any point, and they could pretty much always see the bottom. The divers ended up separating into two different teams, and they cleared all the brush along the water and searched every inch of that creek. But at the end of it all, they didn't find any indication of a body in the creek or any sign of a Lonzo at all.

They reported their findings to the police station and they offered to come back if needed, but they ended up never being called back. And eventually the investigation into aonzo Brooks' disappearance was closed. Overall, law enforcement did like six searches of the property of the farmhouse and the creek. There were over 40 people searching in the group, and they literally went shoulder to shoulder, combed every single area, and searched them multiple times, And at the same time, the KBI and the FBI are conducting tons of interviews with people who are at the party to see if they could figure out what had happened. Some of the witnesses were willing to take polygraph tests. A lot of them were not, but they did give them out to people who volunteered. And those family kept hearing rumors

about a fight breaking out around three or four in the morning. This would have been after all of Alonzo's friends had left, but the details around it were really sketchy. His friends met up with investigators several times and talked to them about what they had witnessed that night. They gave them more names, more phone numbers of people to contact, may know something, but they were told over and over again

that Alonzo probably just got drunk, kicked off his shoes and tried to walk home, maybe got lost along the way. But that just didn't make any sense. Justin was trying to tell them over and over again that there was no way he would have done that because he had a hurt ankle. Why would he do that?

He had that sock rolled up to support his ankle for a reason. So if he's gonna walk home, why would he take his shoes off to do that? He had that sock rolled up to support his ankle for a reason. So if he's gonna walk home, why would he take shoes off to do that? Plus, there's no way he would have started trying to walk home. But it didn't seem to matter how much his friends pushed back. The investigators seemed stuck on the idea that there was no foul play involved. For three weeks, O'ono's family members called the Lin County Sheriff's Office every single day, asking for updates on the case, trying to get permission to join the search, but eventually investigators told them to stop calling. They said, we'll contact you when we know something.

But then finally, almost a month later, on May 1, 2004, the family was given the green light to go ahead and search the property for themselves. At this point, Zo, of course, had been missing for almost a month and they didn't have a lot of hope for finding anything. They were just more focused on finding any possible evidence, anything that may belong to Zo, or could give them a little bit more information. They weren't really suspecting to find him, of course. But they rounded up friends and a few community volunteers and headed out to the property to look.

There was more than 50 of them that actually gathered at the property. They put on orange vests and started to scour every area of the property and the creek behind it. There was one group that was led by a volunteer named Karen Turner. Karen decided to search an area around a shed. And as her group walked towards this shed, if they were going to go check out, they're clearing a bunch of thick brush around the creek. And when they reached the edge of the ravine, she looked out over the water and suddenly saw Alonza. He was just lying there. It almost looked like he was still alive. She knew he wasn't, but he was just lying there so peacefully, almost as if he had like fallen

asleep in the creek. They were totally shocked that they actually found him on the property that he hadn't been found yet. So she used the radio to alert Zoves Uncle Edward, then told Billy that they had found his little baby brother's body And he ran over to the spot that he was and when he got there He said it just took everything in him not to run over and grab him But they knew they had to leave everything untouched and of course as soon as they found Alonzo They knew that's something Horrible had happened that there had been foul playzo, they knew that something horrible had happened, that there had been foul play involved. And they knew that there was just no way

that the search and rescue team and the cadaver dogs, the helicopters, all of that missed him right on the property. It didn't make any sense, so they believe that someone got word that they were going to be finally able to search the area and they moved his body there for them to find. As soon as they found his body and reported it, a bunch of law enforcement came to the scene, Lanzo's body was then taken to Shawnee County, where seasoned pathologist Dr. Eric Mitchell

performed an autopsy. And he said that he found no trace of acute penetration, no bone fractures, gunshot wounds, no evidence of stabbing, drowning, or strangulation. Although he said that there really was no way to determine if he was strangled because all of the soft tissue around his neck had been decomposed and, you know, a lot of it had been eaten by bugs and animals in the ravine. There was no water in his lungs, but that doesn't necessarily mean he couldn't have died from drowning. There were also no marks that could be seen on his bones, but that doesn't rule out the idea that he could have been stabbed, uh, bludgeoned to death, beaten to death. But with the way his body was, the pathologist said that there was no way to prove exactly how he died, and his death was ruled as undetermined.

And what's really strange is right after the autopsy, the sheriff in the area came forward and said that he believed that this was a murder. But then a few days later, he retracted his statement and then he started calling it a death investigation. When he was asked about how Alonza's body could have ended up in the creek after it had been searched several times thoroughly he said you know nature to take its course and his idea really was that the body Could have gone down the creek and it could have taken some time He could have been stuck in some trees or a dam at some point But Alonzo's friends and family were not buying it

They believe that someone placed him there conveniently when they heard they were gonna be searching. Within an hour and just say, 36 minutes, they were out, did they found my son? That quick, that told me something right there. They were hiding my son. I know they were hiding my son. And we knew in our heart, we knew it was murder.

The family talked with the leader of the dive team as well that looked through the creek. And they said that there was no way his body was in the creek when they searched that if it was, they would have found it. Some investigators do believe that maybe his body was stuck somewhere in the ravine and that as the creek filled more because the water level did go up up that his body was carried downstream. And of course, that's possible, but it doesn't make a lot of sense because Elanzo had quite a few

belongings on him. And in the Unzov mysteries episode, his mom brings out all the stuff that they found with him, you know, his wallet, his movie card, his bandana, papers that he had that still had writing. He had all this stuff on his body in the water and none of it was damaged. It all looked completely fine. So it really doesn't seem like he was in the water for that long. Plus, Billy said that when he first found him, he looked normal. His skin looked full of life. Like, there wasn't any discoloration or anything you'd expect to see when someone dies. So with Alonzo's death, there are two big mysteries, how he died and where his body was until May 1st. Unfortunately, with no evidence of a hate crime,

the FBI left the case and left the family with pretty much nothing. All there is is rumors and speculation and boy are there. All over Reddit people claiming they know what happened that night claiming they were at the party or they knew someone who was at the party and they know exactly what had happened to Alonzo.

Some people have said he was dragged by a truck, some people said he was beaten to death. There's so many different versions and that's gotta be so hard as a family, so traumatizing to just think through all the possibilities and then, you know, people are constantly bringing up new ideas and you have to think about that. I mean, it's exhausting. I guess a lot of people from the party have loyered up and have gotten out of taking polygraph tests. They don't want to be talking to anybody. I'm sure in the town there's a lot of rumors going around about people and names specifically but nothing that I could find. And then there's people out there that think that maybe his friends actually know

more than they're saying, which you know who really who really knows. It's hard to say I mean watching the Unsolvedies episode, I felt a lot of sadness coming from his friends, especially Justin, a lot of regret and pain, and I think he truly feels guilty. I mean, they really fucked up that night leaving him there. But of course, it's hard to tell how someone really is over an Netflix documentary. I wish there was more information, I wish there was more to work with, but there really isn't. Of course, there's a theory that Alonzo's death could have been an accident. Maybe he drank too much and he wandered off and got injured or passed out. And of course, that's a possibility.

But if that had happened, they would have found him, right? They would have found a trace of him. And how do you explain his shoes just randomly being thrown clearly out of a car on the side of the road. There's also the idea that maybe he drank too much at the party and that people were scared that they'd get in trouble for having alcohol at the party, but this theory doesn't make a lot of sense

because he was over the legal age. People have also brought the idea that maybe someone had given him some type of drug and he OD'd on it and this person felt guilty or was scared and they hit his body. But most of the rumors and most people theorized that this was a straight-up murder. This was a hate crime. There were a lot of people who claimed to have seen zoe that night hanging out with a young white woman and getting really close with her laughing with her kind of, you know,

flirting. And a lot of people theorized that there could have been someone there that day who did not like that and did not want to see Alonzo with a white woman and could have killed him. This could have led to some type of fight, altercation, that then led to murder, or maybe it was premeditated murder from the start. Alonzo's friends know that if he was in that situation that he would have fought back. He would have done everything in his power he could to save himself. Here's also the theory that maybe he did try to walk home at the end of the night.

It really makes sense about why he would take his shoes off, but maybe someone picked him up along the way. That maybe he just came in contact with a random killer, but that seems unlikely. No matter how he died though, his family are convinced that he was kept somewhere for some period of time, dead or alive. His brother believes that he was likely kept

in a meat locker, and that's why his body was in decent condition when they found him. But with that's why his body was in decent condition when they found him. But with the way that his body was, there was no way to see when he actually died. There's no time of death at all. Some people believe that his body was in the creek that whole time, just really well hidden for almost 30 days. Others believe that he was held somewhere, possibly alive, and then killed, or that he was killed, stored

somewhere, and then put there later on. The pathologist, Dr. Mitchell, believes that it's unlikely someone would have moved his body out there. He said that when people hide bodies, move bodies, they try to do the most convenient thing possible, and that it's rather inconvenient to bring him all the way out through this brush out to the creek. But that doesn't mean someone didn't do that. I mean, someone absolutely could have done that. Maybe a group of people. Alonzo's family was finally able to give

him a proper burial and hold a funeral service. He was buried in Mount Calvary Cemetery in Topeka. But for his family, especially his mom, his brother, not knowing what happened to him is a pain that they will never, until they get answers, you know, be able to move forward from. Imagine how you would feel if you lost someone, someone important to you in your life, and you didn't even know what happened to them. You didn't know who was responsible. I mean, that would just be eating away at you every day. Justin said that he is just haunted. I would happen that night that he feels incredibly guilty about what happened to

Alonzo and he feels that if he never had left, this never would have happened. And I think he's probably right. His mom, Maria, is incredibly heartbroken, hurt, and angry, and a bit paranoid about her other kids now. She is obsessed with making sure that they stay safe and she's terrified to lose another. In March of 2019, their family received even more devastating news. The KBI released a statement that they were officially closing the case. His family was totally shocked. They didn't understand how they could just completely wrap up the case when they still had no answers. They had no idea what happened to Alonzo, no idea how he ended up in the creek. I mean there was just nothing. But luckily Netflix was already working on their reboot of Unsolved Mysteries.

And when they heard about Alonzo's case, they knew they had to include it in one of their episodes. And I'm so glad they did because it got a lot of eyes on this case. And so Netflix started sending out requests for information to the FBI. So Steven McHallister, who is the US Attorney for the District of Kansas, immediately started looking into this case because he had never heard of it. And he realized that this should have never been closed. And luckily, the case was reopened because of the Netflix show in April 2019. And since the FBI has also rejoined the case, which is great. They're continuing to investigate the possibility that Lons' death was part of a hate crime. And it's still

an open investigation. They're still interviewing witnesses, looking over evidence, trying to put the pieces of what happened at that party together. And in June of 2020, the FBI announced a $100,000 reward for any information that could help solve the case. And you know, this happened in 2004. Many of the people who are at the party were kids, and they've grown up since then. Maybe they have more of a conscious now. Maybe they will be willing to talk. Maybe they saw something.

If for some reason you're listening to this and you know something, please consider getting that information to the right people. His family is still begging for anything, even if it seems small. Any information that you could have or that you know about Lassine, about people who could have been at this party, all of

that is important and could end up helping them solve this case. You need to come forward, you know, you've grown up now. It's time. Also investigators announced that there were some positive developments made in the case. They said this is actual evidence that Alonzo

was the victim of a hate crime. They said that night that there was a racially motivated fight and that someone at the party had used the word brawl. There are numerous reports from those who attended of fights breaking out during the party. Sometimes describe even as brawls. There are also reports of racist comments being made. The Netflix Unsolved Mystery episode about Alonzo's case was released on July 1, 2020. His family organized a little watch party to view it together, and they had a renewed

sense of hope that, you know, they might finally get answers about what happened to Alonzo after all this time, especially with more people aware of the situation. Every day, it's like reliving, you know, it over and wondering what happened, who is responsible, you know, looking for help, you know, to try to help solve the case. I hope that it will let my, let the people out there know that we want to answer and we need to answer now. And I hope they just get around to everybody out there. After the episode aired, a lot of tips came in,

which was great. And at least three of those tips were credible enough to be investigated fully by the FBI. And then that same month, the FBI announced that they had evidence that justified them exhuming Alonzo's body. This was a huge step forward. That means they have something big.

I mean, to exhumuma body normally means they have something quite substantial. That's not something that's just done willingly. His body was brought to the Dover Air Force Base to be examined by the top forensic pathologist and experts in the field. They used new DNA technology that wasn't available in 2004. And the forensics team is certain that he was murdered. They said that the injuries on his body are inconsistent with normal patterns of decomposition. And on April 5th, 2021, all these years later, Alonzo's cause of death was finally changed to homicide. This was a huge new development.

They are very, very happy and have a renewed sense of hope that they may actually get the justice that they want. And I know we would get answered this time. And I know I'll get justice. happy and have a renewed sense of hope that they may actually get the justice that they want. And I know we will get answered this time, and I know I'll get justice. I just know someone after knows what happened to my son. I reached out to Othrom, a company that specializes in forensic evidence to see how medical examiner experts would be able to determine how a person died 16 years later. The director for case management,

Michael Vogan couldn't speak to this case, but says technology has advanced a lot the past couple of decades, allowing for more information to come from DNA. If any of those items have been analyzed for DNA and there's a profile present that's not the victims, so in other words, it's an unknown human DNA profile. They could potentially do the type of testing we do in

all-thrum to figure out who that DNA belongs to. Alonzo's family is so happy that they finally have this. I mean, they've known all along that this was a murder, that this was a homicide, but now they have the proof that it was. And with all these new developments, all the new work that the FBI is doing behind the scenes, their family is hopeful that Alonzo's case might be solved, that we might finally get

some answers about what happened that night and who killed him. As of right now, the investigation is still ongoing, but it seems like amazing developments are being made after all these years. This happened back in 2004. There's so many cases out there that have been closed long ago, cold cases that never get answers. So it's really encouraging to see that their family feels hopeful. You know, I'm so happy that Netflix got this out to so many people. And this latest update is just fantastic news. I really hope

in the future, we see justice for a a long so that we see closure for this family after everything that they have been through. I mean I think it is one of the most fucked up things on earth when a family member or a friend of a family member are the people to actually find their lost loved ones body. I mean that is one of the most heartbreaking things to me. Every time I hear about that, in a case, I just, I get so emotional, because I cannot imagine what that would be like. You know, it's just not something that family members

should have to experience. And I just really, really hope that people go down for this, that someone is held accountable for Alonzo's death because he did not deserve this. He sounded like such a wonderful guy and his family has been, I mean, their lives are forever changed by this one night. It's incredibly sad. That is going to be it for me today, guys. Thank you for joining me for another episode and make sure you follow the show on Spotify and Apple podcasts. It really does help me out. If you want to watch the video version of this show,

you can find it on my YouTube channel, which will be linked, or you can just search Kendall Ray. I will be back with another episode soon, but until then, stay safe out there. Whether you're doing a dance to your favorite artist in the office parking lot, are being guided into Warrior I in the break room before your shift. Whether you're running on your Peloton tread at your mom's house while she watches the baby, or counting your breaths on the subway. Peloton is for all of us.

Wherever we are, whenever we need it, download the free Peloton app today. Peloton app available through free tier or paid subscription starting at $12.99 per month. From joyful occasions to the unexpected, first Franklin financial makes loans for living, offering fixed rates and flexible terms on loans up to $15,000. The next time you're looking for some extra cash to help make ends meet, come see the friendly Franklin folks, or visit us at 1ffc.com to learn more.

All loan terms and APRs depend on meeting our underwriting and income criteria and may require collateral. First Franklin Financial Corporation is licensed by the Virginia State Corporation Commission CFI-215, Georgia Residential Mortgage Licency 5656, MMLS and the 14165 for not available in North Carolina. residential mortgage licensee 5656, MMLS, and the 141654, not available in North Carolina.