Sept. 16, 2025

Chapter 115: Buried Secrets-The McStay Family Murders Pt. 1

Chapter 115: Buried Secrets-The McStay Family Murders Pt. 1
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Three years ago, I explored one of California’s most tragic true crime cases: the disappearance and murder of the McStay family, Summer and Joseph McStay, and their two young sons, Gianni and Joey Jr., on February 4, 2010. While there have been no major updates since my last coverage, I’ve gathered additional details about the case and trial that shed new light on the events.
In Part 1, I follow the timeline from the days leading up to the McStays’ disappearance to the shocking discovery of their bodies three years later, including the suspects and eventual arrest.
Part 2 will dive deeper into the case against the man currently on death row for the family’s murders, examining the evidence and legal proceedings that brought him to justice as well as whether or not I still believe police may have gotten the wrong man.

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Aradillas, E. (2014, November 9). Patrick McStay has a theory about why his family was murdered. People.com. https://people.com/crime/mcstay-family-murders-patrick-mcstays-theory-about-why-they-were-killed/Dziemianowicz, J. (2023, December 30). ‘Monster’ slaughters entire family — mom, dad, 2 young sons — and buries them in the desert. Oxygen. https://www.oxygen.com/killer-motive/crime-news/mcstay-family-murders-who-killed-themFalcon, G. (2013, January 26). Three years later, no sign of missing family. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2013/01/26/justice/mcstay-family-disappearance/index.htmlFigueroa, T. (2013, November 15). How the McStay case unfolded. U-T San Diego. https://web.archive.org/web/20131203005025/http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/Nov/15/timeline-mcstay-disappearance-case/Flynn, S. (2022, May 21). McStay murders: A man is on death row for the brutal killings of a young family found in shallow graves in the desert – but did he really do it? The Independent. https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/crime/mcstay-murder-california-documentary-chase-merritt-b2084210.htmlFraga, K. (2025, July 10). The McStay family murders and the “Monster” behind them. All That’s Interesting. https://allthatsinteresting.com/mcstay-family-murdersGarske, M. (2020, January 17). Charles Merritt’s DNA found in McStay family car: search warrants. NBC 7 San Diego. https://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/charles-merritt-mcstay-family-murders-search-warrants-unsealed/52907/Gotfredson, D. (2025, July 12). New book details evidence that led to conviction in McStay family murders. cbs8.com. https://www.cbs8.com/article/news/crime/true-crime/new-book-evidence-conviction-mcstay-family-murders/509-8001a9cb-cfeb-42da-b257-c6993f1aa668Gutglueck, M. (2019, April 19). Kavanaugh hacked into McStay’s PayPal account a week after the murders. SBC Sentinel. https://sbcsentinel.com/2019/04/kavanaugh-hacked-mcstay-paypalaccount/Kaye, R. (2015, June 16). Desert Deaths Mystery: Five questions about the McStay case. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2014/07/01/justice/mcstay-case-five-questionsProsecutors begin presenting evidence against Charles “Chase” Merritt in McStay murder case. (2015, June 15). CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/prosecutors-begin-presenting-evidence-in-mcstay-murder-case/Richard K. De Atley The Press-Enterprise. (2019, January 25). Jurors in Merritt murder trial hear crucial recording. Victorville Daily Press. https://www.vvdailypress.com/story/news/courts/2019/01/25/jurors-in-merritt-murder-trial/6204138007/Slifer, S. (2013, November 15). McStay Family Update: Joseph McStay’s father calls probe of Calif. family’s 2010 disappearance “botched, inept.” CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/mcstay-family-update-joseph-mcstays-father-calls-probe-of-calif-familys-2010-disappearance-botched-inept/Slifer, S. (2015, January 24). Search warrants unsealed in McStay family murder case in California. CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/search-warrants-unsealed-in-mcstay-murder-case/VVNG - Victor Valley News. (2015, June 11). New Evidence Suggest a Sledge Hammer was Used in Murdering McStay Family. Victor Valley News. https://www.vvng.com/new-evidence-suggest-a-sledge-hammer-was-used-in-murdering-mcstay-family/



If you enjoyed the episode, consider leaving a review or rating! It helps more than you know! 
If you have a case suggestion, or want attention brought to a loved one's case, email me at bookofthedeadpod@gmail.com with Case Suggestion in the subject line.

Stay safe, stay curious, and stay vigilant.

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Every story has a beginning, but not everyone has an ending.

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In the shadows of headlines and buried police reports lay

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the voices of the missing, the murdered, and the forgotten,

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react naturally and usually leave me with a whole lot

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Could you hold the key to bringing someone home? Hello, Hello,

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Welcome to the next chapter in the Book of the Dead.

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A few months ago, I re recorded the first chapter

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that I ever did, covering the Lanes Angels of Death.

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And I had done this for a couple of reasons.

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I had some information I wanted to add and the

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quality of the first episode was abysmal. It was truly awful. Today,

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while I work on a couple of other cases, I

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wanted to go back and look at a case that

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still fascinates me even three years after I've covered it,

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that of the Mixed Day Family murders. Like with the

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Lane's Angels of Death. While the bulk of the story

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will be the same, I do have addition information that

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I've discovered since my original recording, and by the end

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of this new take on the case, maybe my opinion

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on whether or not Chase Merrit is guilty will change,

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maybe it won't. Either way, the quality of the episode

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will be a vast improvement, and if we're lucky, we'll

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get it done in one episode. So from the archives,

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this is the murder of the Mixday family. By all accounts,

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forty three year old Summer and forty year old Joseph

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McStay were a very average American family. Summer was a

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real estate agent and current stay at home mom, and

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Joseph owned his own company called Earth Inspired Products, and

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they made and installed decorative water fountains. For example, if

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you went into a high end bank or maybe a

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luxury mall and you saw a fancy waterfall against the

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wall or in the middle of the floor, something to

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that effect, this is what Joseph's company did, and it

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was a very successful business. Joseph was very driven when

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it came to his job, because he was the kind

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of man who took providing for his family very seriously.

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He was consistently on top of phone calls and emails

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from clients, employees, and contractors, and he was known for

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being very prompt and responding to anyone, but especially if

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it related to any business dealings. They had two children together,

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four year old Gianni and three year old Giuseppe, who

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they called Joey Junior. And Joseph also had an older

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child from his previous relationship. According to those that knew

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the mix Days, they were a very loving family and

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very tight knit. Joseph and Summer were always off doing

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something with the kids, whether it be bike riding or

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taking them to different places. They were also known to

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be very kind family. Friend and account manager for Earth

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Inspired Products, Gina Watson said on Discovery Channel's docuseries about

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the Murder's two Shallow Graves that Joseph and Summer were

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very giving and the type of people to give the

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shirts off their backs for others. The family originally resided

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in San Clemente, California, before moving to Fallbrook around Thanksgiving

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in November two thousand and nine. Summer and Joseph had

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purchased the fixer upper that they had intended to renovate.

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And when I originally discussed this case, I dove into

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the timeline starting on the day of the family's disappearance. However,

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now I have a bit more detail, so we're going

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to backtrack a little bit. As I said, the Mixdays

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moved to Fallbrook in the fall of two thousand and nine.

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On December fourth, according to the San Diego Union Tribune,

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someone and it's believed to be Summer, responds to an

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ad on Craigslist advertising the sale of Spanish language programs,

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and this is relevant. Later, nothing significant would occur for

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over a month that is pertinent to the case until

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January twenty seventh, when someone and it's never been able

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to be determined to exactly access the family computer and

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made inquiries on about dot com regarding traveling to Mexico

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and how to go about obtaining passports for children. Two

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days later, on the twenty ninth, Joseph is seen in

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Alisa Viejo in Orange County, talking to two men in

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the parking lot while at a soccer game. According to

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the Union Tribune, it is assumed that these two men

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were discussing the Craigslist at that Summer had inquired about

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with Joseph. However, I haven't seen anything that's infinitively proves this.

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On the thirty first, Joey Junior turns three years old.

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On February third, the day before the disappearance, the home

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computer is used sometime in the morning to search for

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ways to create an invitation for a child's birthday party.

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Also on this day, a friend and it's not specified

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who comes by the next day home to do some painting.

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As I said, they had purchased the house with the

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intention of renovating it. This person is there for about

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half the day and they promise to come back on

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the sixth to finish the job. This friend is the

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last person to have a confirmed visual of Summer and

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her boys. Additionally, sometime that day, credit card records confirm

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that Summer used her card to purchase items, including some

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educational toys totaling around sixty six dollars at a Row

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store in Vista. Now February fourth. When looking at it

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from an investigative point of view, is packed with details

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of the family's movements, much of it down to the

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exact timestamp. That morning, Summer speaks to her sister Tracy

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Russell on the phone and they make plans for Summer

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to take a trip to visit Tracy's newborn baby. Around noon,

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Joseph leaves the family home in the Zuzu Trooper and

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heads to Ranchokukamaga for a business meeting with a man

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named Charles Ray Merritt. Charles, who went by Chase, was

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a welder who frequently did work for Joseph's company. Fulbrook

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is anywhere from an hour and ten to an hour

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and twenty two minutes from Ranchokookamonga, depending on the route

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that Joseph would have taken, but we can guess that,

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assuming he wasn't sitting in traffic, that Joseph met with

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Chase sometime around one point thirty maybe one forty five,

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at the Chick fil A that they had agreed upon

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meeting at. At two thirty six, credit card records show

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that Summer again went to Ross and Vista, it's only

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about twenty minutes from the home, and purchased beach bags,

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infant pajamas presumably for her sister's baby, and a jacket

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just shy of An hour and a half later, at

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three fifty two pm, someone most likely Summer uses the

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home computer to peruse Craigslist for children's toys. At four

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twenty five pm, phone records showed that a phone call

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was made from the Fulbrook home to Joseph's cell phone.

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As I said in the original recording, this could have

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been Summer calling Joseph to see when he would be

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coming home. Maybe she was thinking about starting dinner and

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wanted to know if he was leaving soon, or perhaps

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they had plants. From five PM to five forty seven

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pm text messages are exchanged between Summer and Joseph. Now

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it's not known what time Joseph returned home from this

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meeting with Chase. However, at seven forty seven PM, a

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neighbor's surveillance camera catches a white truck leaving the street.

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Only the bottom of the car is visible, and it's

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unknown who was driving or if anyone else was inside. However,

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at least at the time, it is assumed that this

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white truck seen on surveillance footage is the family's white

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Azuzu Trooper. About forty minutes later, at eight twenty eight pm,

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a phone call is made to Chase Merit from Joseph's phone,

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and the call was confirmed to have pinged off of

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the cell phone tower in Fallbrook. Now, Joseph calling Chase

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after the meeting was, at least according to Chase, not unusual.

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Besides having a business relationship, Joseph and Chase were very

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good friends. They talked regularly and even spend time together

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outside working hours, going paintballing and things like that. This

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phone call, though, was the last time anyone has any

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possible idea of what the Mix Days were doing and

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where they were, And it can't even be confirmed that

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Joseph himself was the one to make the phone call,

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because Chase never answered. On February fifth and sixth, According

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to The Union Tribune, friends and family repeatedly try to

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get in contact with the Mixtates, but there's no response

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from either Summer or Joseph on February seventh. To my knowledge,

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there is no confirmed attempt to contact them. On February eighth,

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twenty ten, four days after anyone has seen or spoken

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to any members of the family, their car is found

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in a strip mall parking lot in Sandy Sidro, approximately

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two blocks from the US Mexico border. The car is

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towed at around eleven PM, and a security guard there

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estimates that the car was likely parked there between five

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thirty and seven PM. At this point, no one knows

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that the Azuzu trooper in sanue Sedro belongs to the

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Mix Days, since no one has started looking for them yet.

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On February ninth, after multiple failed attempts to contact Joseph.

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Chase Marrit goes to Falbrook to see what's going on,

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and he takes Joseph's brother Michael with him. After the

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two arrive at the McStay home and are unable to

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see any evidence of the family there, Chase is concerned

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enough to tell Michael they should go to the police.

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He's also concerned enough to send an email to Joseph's father.

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According to people, this email said quote, I haven't heard

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from Joe. He's not answering the phone. He's not answering texts.

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It isn't like Joe, can you get back to me.

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It is unknown if Chase ever received a response. On

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February tenth, a San Diego County Sheriff's deputy agrees to

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conduct a welfare check, but when no one answers the

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door and there's no evidence of forced entry or any

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indication of any foul play, the police leave. That same day, though,

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in Texas, Joseph's father, Patrick McStay starts receiving phone calls

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from someone named de Cavanaugh. Now, at this point in time,

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Patrick is not aware that anything is amiss with his

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son's family. Joseph and his father didn't speak every day,

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so any potential radio silence wasn't considered abnormal. However, the

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sudden phone calls from d Cavanaugh were now. Patrick initially

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ignores these phone calls, but undeterred, this person starts emailing Patrick,

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urging him to answer the phone or call him back. Finally,

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Michael McStay calls his father and Patrick asks him if

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he knows who has been repeatedly calling him. He tells

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his father that the person trying to get a hold

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of him is a man by the name of Daniel Kavanaugh.

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Dan Kavanaugh was Joseph's business partner. He had designed the

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website for Earth inspired products, and the two had a

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deal where for every lead that came through the website,

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Joseph would give Dan a portion of the sale. Michael

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calls Dan and asks why he's reaching out to Patrick,

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and Dan explains that he's worried about Joseph. He has

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repeatedly tried to reach him for days at this point,

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and now Joseph's boy mailbox is full and so is

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his email. As I've already established, this is highly unusual.

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Joseph was religious about responding to anything that had to

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to do with his business. Nothing interfered with his ability

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to provide for his family. Patrick is incredibly worried when

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he hears about this. He knows that it's not in

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his son's character to not answer or acknowledge anything that

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has to do with the company, so he tells Michael

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to go check on his brother. Since Patrick is in Texas,

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he can't get to California right then and there. He

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must either drive or get on a plane. However, for

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whatever reason, Michael is not willing to go back to

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Falbrook to see what's going on with his brother. He

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insists to Patrick that his brother is fine and the

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family either went away for a long weekend or maybe

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they were on vacation. Whatever the case may have been,

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Michael was choosing to believe that nothing was amiss. While

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I can't give you any insight as to why Michael

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was so adamant that everything was fine, Patrick told the

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producers of Two Shallow Graves that his son's refusal to

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check on his brother infuriated him. On February thirteenth, three

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days after Dan Cavanaugh tells Michael that he hasn't been

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able to contact Joseph, Chase again returns to the Mixed

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Day Home with Michael concerned that still no one has

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heard from the family. After their knocks at the door

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again go unanswered, Chase and Michael look for another way

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into the home. Finding Joseph's office window unlocked, Michael climbs

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through and opens the door for Chase, and they look around.

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According to two shallow Graves, nothing inside the house seems

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unusual in the sense that there is no sign of

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a struggle or foul play. Chase tells Michael at this

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point that he needs to go to the police and

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report the family missing. If Michael still insistent that they

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just went away were fuse used, Chase told him he

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would make the report himself. Michael reports his brother and

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his family missing, and the San Diego County Sheriff's Department

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arrived at the home on the fifteenth. During the initial sweep,

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the police note that there is no evidence of forced

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entry and the family dogs are in the backyard. Police

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also see, according to CBS, that on the door is

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a notice from San Diego County Animal Control letting the

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next days know that they are being warned about abandoning

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their dogs. So it appears that possibly a neighbor had

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reported the dogs being left outside for several days to

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animal control at some point during the eleven days of

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the family had been missing. This was also highly unusual,

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as Summer and Joseph treated their dogs as members of

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the family. They were very well taken care of, and

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if they couldn't bring the dogs wherever it was they

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were going, they were known to board the dogs at

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a kennel or find reliable dog sitters as they moved

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through the house. The police confirmed that nothing seems to

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indicate that anything has gone wrong, but rather it looks

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like the Mixday family just got up in the middle

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of what they were doing and walked out the door.

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In the kitchen was a carton of eggs on the counter,

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as well as a bag of microwavable popcorn, and in

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the living room on the couch were two small bulls

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filled with popcorn, as if Summer or Joseph had made

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some for the boys to have while watching a movie.

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According to search warrants that police had obtained on February

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00:18:39.920 --> 00:18:43.000
nineteenth in order to thoroughly search the house, the car,

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and their phone records and computers, police found in the

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upstairs master bedroom a floor lamp laying on the floor,

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and in the walk in closet were several suitcases with

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clothing folded inside, and a large pile of clothes on

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the floor. Now, the friend that had originally come to

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the McStay home to paint had said that this in

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itself was unusual because Joseph was known to be very,

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very neat. This friend had been roommates with Joseph and

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said that he was not a person to leave clothes

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lying around. It's also important to note that in the

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time it took police to obtain search warrants, the mixtay

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home was left unsecured. Joseph's family were in and out

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of the house, and Joseph's mother had even cleaned up

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00:19:30.519 --> 00:19:34.680
the kitchen due to the smell. Michael had even taken

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Joseph's computer and SD card with allegedly the police's permission,

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so any possible evidence that would have been in the

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house was compromised. Also when the search warrant, according to CBS,

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00:19:49.480 --> 00:19:52.440
was a note written by San Diego County Detective Troy

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Dugal that said, quote, it is my opinion that the

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McStay family is the victim of foul play. I believe

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that some all of the McStay family had been kidnapped

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and killed. Despite this being noted in the warrant, this

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is not the theory police end up pursuing. During their investigation,

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police having the warrant to search the family's car, track

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00:20:15.720 --> 00:20:19.680
it down in a tow yard in Sandy Sidro. As

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I mentioned, the car had been found two blocks from

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the border, so police check out the car and find

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no evidence that the family was in danger. While in

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the vehicle, they also look at surveillance footage from Border

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Control and they spot what looks to be a family

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of four a man, woman, and two small children walking

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into Mexico, and the surveillance video, the only clear detail

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that I can make out was that the woman seemed

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to be wearing a winter coat with a fur trim,

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but nothing in the image was clearly identifiable as being

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the mix stays. In fact, according to Oxygen, Joseph's mother's

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Susan Blake, told Killer Motive producers that she didn't believe

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the family in the video were the Mixtays. She said

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she knew her son's walk even from the back, and

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the man in the footage didn't walk the way she

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knew her son to. Additionally, she told CNN that there

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were other things that had her convinced that this wasn't

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her family. Quote, my son's meds were in that car.

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My son has asthma and doesn't go anywhere without the

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meds on him. And to have babies go without car seats,

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this is the stuff that doesn't add up. Michael also

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00:21:37.359 --> 00:21:40.039
wasn't convinced that the police were accurate in their opinion.

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He said, quote, the best is that the children appear

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to be sides appropriate, but I couldn't get an id

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off the adult. Even if it were them crossing, we

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still don't know to what intent. We don't know if

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it was under duress or willingly. Based on the car's

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proximity to the border, coupled with the surveillance foot police

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00:22:01.000 --> 00:22:05.279
started operating under the assumption that the mix Days disappeared voluntarily.

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Investigator Dennis Brugos told CNN quote, if you look at

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the clothing that they were wearing at the time, it

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coincides with when the vehicle was found, it leads you

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to believe that this was them crossing the border. I

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can't say definitively it's them, but it's a high probability. Personally,

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I'm not really sure where this reasoning is coming from.

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No one has any idea what the mix Days were

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wearing on the day they disappeared, so there's no way

335
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of knowing whether this family in the video were wearing

336
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the same things. The only thing it seems that the

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00:22:39.359 --> 00:22:41.720
police are basing this on is the fact that this

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family was wearing winter clothing in February. Either way, the

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police supported their theory after viewing Internet history and seeing

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the inquiries into programs to learn Spanish and search as

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00:22:53.319 --> 00:22:59.359
looking at travel in Mexico and inquiring about passports and Additionally,

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00:22:59.480 --> 00:23:02.799
police have learned that Joseph had been to Tijuana multiple

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times for work and was relatively familiar with the area. However,

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multiple family members said that at least Summer did not

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believe Mexico is a safe place to bring their children.

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On February twenty third, based on this information, Interpool releases

347
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an alert about the missing family for police to be

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on the lookout, but that's really where the initial investigation ends. However,

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their loved ones are not happy. While police confirm they

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followed up on hundreds of leads and tips over the

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next three years, they had nothing solid to go on.

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Lieutenant Glen John Antonio said of the limited evidence they

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had that quote everything leads us to believe the disappearance

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is voluntary. It still categorized as a missing person's case.

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We have to rely on facts and evidence. We don't

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want to publicize unsubstantiated theories. Everyone has theories. However, we

357
00:24:02.640 --> 00:24:05.160
can't come out and say this is what actually happened

358
00:24:05.279 --> 00:24:09.359
unless we have something to back that up. Unhappy with

359
00:24:09.440 --> 00:24:11.960
what appeared to be a lack of urgency from the police,

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Joseph's family investigate on their own. Michael followed up on

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00:24:16.680 --> 00:24:19.559
his own tips and alleged sightings, even going as far

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00:24:19.599 --> 00:24:22.519
as believes where Joseph owned property, to try and find

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00:24:22.519 --> 00:24:28.079
his brother. Patrick McStay was also doing his own investigation.

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He had brought to police's attention various email exchanges, credit

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00:24:33.079 --> 00:24:36.960
card transactions, and other information that he believed would aid

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in the investigation. In February of twenty eleven, one year

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after the mcsday's disappearance, Patrick filed a complaint with Internal

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Affairs against the San Diego County Sheriff's Department, believing that

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the police had jumped to conclusions about their not being

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a criminal aspect to the case, and frustrated that he

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had been the one to find information that they should

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00:25:00.359 --> 00:25:05.720
have uncovered themselves. After filing the complaint and publicly calling

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out Detective Dougal for, in his opinion, botching the investigation,

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Patrick received fewer and fewer updates in the case. Contact

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with him would seize completely, even when the investigation took

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00:25:18.799 --> 00:25:23.519
a turn for the worse. Three years after their disappearance,

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in April of twenty thirteen, police publicly announced that they

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00:25:27.920 --> 00:25:31.640
did not believe anything criminal had happened to the family

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00:25:32.200 --> 00:25:38.599
and they had voluntarily left the country. However, seven months

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later that would change. On October eleventh, a motorcyclist was

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taking a ride through the Mahave Desert in Victorville when

382
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he spotted something in the desert. One hundred miles from

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Valbrook and sixty miles outside of Los Angeles was a

384
00:25:57.200 --> 00:26:01.680
piece of a skull. A man called the police, letting

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00:26:01.720 --> 00:26:04.359
them know that he had found remains, but he was

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00:26:04.440 --> 00:26:08.920
on shore if they were human or animal. When police arrived,

387
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they found by Quarry Road near Highway fifteen two shallow graves,

388
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inside of which were four sets of skeletons. DNA and

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00:26:19.559 --> 00:26:24.000
DONAL records were used to identify the bodies as Joseph Summer, Gianni,

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00:26:24.119 --> 00:26:29.279
and Joey McStay. According to autopsy reports, it was determined

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00:26:29.319 --> 00:26:32.240
that all four members of the family had died as

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a result of blunt force trauma. Summer had sustained a

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00:26:36.880 --> 00:26:39.319
blow to the front of her face, breaking her jaw,

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and had been struck in the back of the head.

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Based on photographs of her skull, the damage was extensive,

396
00:26:46.839 --> 00:26:49.680
indicating that there was a lot of rage in the attack.

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00:26:50.799 --> 00:26:53.960
Joseph had a broken rib and clear impact fractures on

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00:26:54.000 --> 00:26:57.599
the back of his head. Police had also discovered a

399
00:26:57.599 --> 00:27:00.920
white electrical cord wrapped around his neck, though it's believed

400
00:27:00.920 --> 00:27:03.880
the cord was not used for strangulation, but rather to

401
00:27:03.920 --> 00:27:07.640
restrain him. His body had been wrapped in a woven

402
00:27:07.680 --> 00:27:11.200
blanket that police confirmed matched a missing futon cover from

403
00:27:11.279 --> 00:27:16.240
the Mixtay home. Gianni had been struck seven times in

404
00:27:16.279 --> 00:27:21.759
the head, which again indicates a lot of rage. Gianni

405
00:27:21.920 --> 00:27:24.839
was four years old and no threat to an attacker.

406
00:27:26.799 --> 00:27:30.440
As for three year old Joey, due to extensive animal activity,

407
00:27:31.160 --> 00:27:37.279
the exact injuries he sustained is unknown. According to CBS,

408
00:27:37.400 --> 00:27:40.680
Patrick McStay claimed that San Diego police had not even

409
00:27:40.799 --> 00:27:44.519
notified him that his son's remains had been found. Quote.

410
00:27:44.640 --> 00:27:47.039
I got a message from someone on Facebook telling me

411
00:27:47.119 --> 00:27:50.119
to go and read an article. The minute I've read

412
00:27:50.119 --> 00:27:54.119
the article, I knew it was him. After the discovery

413
00:27:54.160 --> 00:27:57.319
of the remains, the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department took

414
00:27:57.440 --> 00:28:00.920
over the investigation, assisted by the FA and the San

415
00:28:00.960 --> 00:28:06.119
Diego County Sheriff's Office. At the grave site, police did

416
00:28:06.200 --> 00:28:09.240
find a three pound sledgehammer, which they believed to be

417
00:28:09.279 --> 00:28:12.279
the murder weapon, as well as the remains of clothing

418
00:28:12.319 --> 00:28:16.759
that reinforced the positive identification of the family, including a

419
00:28:16.839 --> 00:28:19.119
brawl with paint on it and a child's pair of

420
00:28:19.119 --> 00:28:24.000
blue shorts. As police investigated the murders, they focused on

421
00:28:24.119 --> 00:28:31.440
four individuals as potential suspects. Vic Johansson, Michael McFadden, Dan Cavanaugh,

422
00:28:31.640 --> 00:28:36.039
and Chase Merritt. Vic was an ex boyfriend of Summers,

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00:28:36.359 --> 00:28:40.160
and according to an article for VVNG, she was living

424
00:28:40.200 --> 00:28:42.839
with him in his home on Big Bear Lake when

425
00:28:42.839 --> 00:28:45.920
she met Joseph and when she became pregnant with Gianni

426
00:28:45.960 --> 00:28:50.480
in two thousand and four. Vic had a pretty extensive

427
00:28:50.559 --> 00:28:55.319
criminal history, making violent threats, including threatening the life of

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00:28:55.319 --> 00:28:59.960
a twelve year old felony, vandalism, disturbing the peace, interfering

429
00:29:00.119 --> 00:29:03.880
with business, and resisting a peace officer. He was a

430
00:29:03.880 --> 00:29:07.680
former marine and at least according to Patrick, Msday, was

431
00:29:07.880 --> 00:29:11.759
incredibly obsessed with Summer and had maintained contact with her.

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00:29:13.480 --> 00:29:16.519
According to two shallow Graves, while Patrick and Gina Watson

433
00:29:16.559 --> 00:29:20.480
were doing their own investigation, Gina found an email from

434
00:29:20.559 --> 00:29:24.160
Vic to Summer that said quote Summer, I'll love you forever.

435
00:29:24.759 --> 00:29:29.599
Happy Birthday, Summer, Forever and Ever Vic. This email was

436
00:29:29.599 --> 00:29:32.119
sent to her two months before her death and was

437
00:29:32.119 --> 00:29:35.119
brought to the attention of police, as well as information

438
00:29:35.240 --> 00:29:38.359
that included proof that Vic frequented a bar next door

439
00:29:38.400 --> 00:29:42.000
to Joseph's office and he lived only a mile from

440
00:29:42.000 --> 00:29:47.279
the Mixday home. However, when San Bernardino police looked into him,

441
00:29:47.440 --> 00:29:50.160
they ultimately had to clear him as a suspect when

442
00:29:50.240 --> 00:29:52.799
cell phone records proved he was in the area of

443
00:29:52.839 --> 00:29:57.279
Los Angeles at the time the family went missing. Michael

444
00:29:57.359 --> 00:30:00.759
McFadden is the husband of Joseph's ex wife, Heather, and

445
00:30:00.839 --> 00:30:05.400
the stepfather to his oldest son. Michael also had a

446
00:30:05.440 --> 00:30:08.880
criminal record. He had been charged in nineteen ninety eight

447
00:30:08.920 --> 00:30:12.440
with criminal threats domestic battery and assault with a deadly

448
00:30:12.519 --> 00:30:16.480
weapon other than a firearm after attacking an ex girlfriend.

449
00:30:18.079 --> 00:30:20.960
According to what I could find, this occurred after a

450
00:30:21.079 --> 00:30:24.400
night of drinking and Michael was completely out of control,

451
00:30:24.799 --> 00:30:27.440
though he maintains that this was a dark point in

452
00:30:27.480 --> 00:30:30.720
his life. He quit drinking after that day and never

453
00:30:30.759 --> 00:30:36.480
looked back. However, for reasons that are still not fully known,

454
00:30:36.759 --> 00:30:40.000
two months before their deaths, Summer filed to complaint with

455
00:30:40.160 --> 00:30:45.119
Child Protective Services against Michael. From what I can gather,

456
00:30:45.359 --> 00:30:49.960
this alleged claim led nowhere, though police did interview him

457
00:30:50.039 --> 00:30:54.079
and he also had an alibi for February fourth. He

458
00:30:54.200 --> 00:30:56.359
maintained he was working at his store for the day

459
00:30:56.440 --> 00:30:59.119
before returning home and staying there for the rest of

460
00:30:59.160 --> 00:31:04.279
the evening. He was ultimately cleared as a suspect. This

461
00:31:04.400 --> 00:31:08.160
brings us to Dan Kavanaugh. As I mentioned, Dan and

462
00:31:08.240 --> 00:31:12.279
Joseph were business partners. Dan designed the website and boosted

463
00:31:12.319 --> 00:31:15.519
its visibility to drive traffic in sales, and Joseph paid

464
00:31:15.559 --> 00:31:19.640
him a percentage when clients purchased through the website. At

465
00:31:19.640 --> 00:31:23.119
the time of Joseph's disappearance, Dan kept the website up

466
00:31:23.119 --> 00:31:26.759
and running, allegedly in the hopes that upon his return,

467
00:31:27.359 --> 00:31:31.960
Joseph would again take control of the business. However, in

468
00:31:32.000 --> 00:31:36.480
twenty eleven, two years before the discovery of the bodies,

469
00:31:37.920 --> 00:31:42.640
Dan Kavanaugh sold Earth inspired products, much to Patrick's fury,

470
00:31:43.279 --> 00:31:46.839
and pocketed the money, totaling over two hundred thousand dollars.

471
00:31:48.720 --> 00:31:52.400
Dan and Joseph also seemed to be having disagreements about

472
00:31:52.440 --> 00:31:55.640
how much Dan should actually have been making in commission.

473
00:31:56.720 --> 00:32:00.000
Based on my research, it suggested that Dan and jos

474
00:32:00.039 --> 00:32:03.240
Joseph had a very loose agreement that he would be

475
00:32:03.279 --> 00:32:07.519
paid whatever Joseph deemed appropriate for each sale, and Dan

476
00:32:07.759 --> 00:32:12.759
was not happy with this arrangement. Messages were discovered from

477
00:32:12.839 --> 00:32:15.359
late two thousand and nine where Dan seemed to have

478
00:32:15.440 --> 00:32:19.839
threatened to shut down the website or significantly reduced its visibility,

479
00:32:20.000 --> 00:32:23.680
impacting sales if he wasn't paid the money he felt

480
00:32:23.720 --> 00:32:28.319
he was owed. After the discovery of the bodies, Dan

481
00:32:28.680 --> 00:32:32.400
also allegedly threatened a man, saying that he knew how

482
00:32:32.440 --> 00:32:37.799
to make people disappear. Police did look into Kabanaugh, and

483
00:32:37.920 --> 00:32:41.400
he was allegedly in Hawaii for over a month at

484
00:32:41.440 --> 00:32:45.640
the time of the Mix Days murders. This was apparently

485
00:32:45.640 --> 00:32:50.079
corroborated by a girlfriend and pictures had been posted on Facebook,

486
00:32:50.319 --> 00:32:54.000
though to my knowledge, no definitive proof has been found

487
00:32:54.079 --> 00:32:57.920
to say with one hundred percent certainty that he really

488
00:32:58.119 --> 00:33:01.400
was out of the state. There is a lot more

489
00:33:01.440 --> 00:33:04.799
to cover on Dan Cavanaugh, but that will have to

490
00:33:04.799 --> 00:33:07.720
be saved for the trial coverage because it's a big

491
00:33:07.799 --> 00:33:12.680
part of the defense's argument. Chase Merit was the police's

492
00:33:12.720 --> 00:33:18.240
final suspect, and unfortunately for Chase, there was an alarming

493
00:33:18.359 --> 00:33:24.519
amount of circumstantial evidence against him. First, police interviewed Chase

494
00:33:24.599 --> 00:33:27.480
two days after the missing person's report was made in

495
00:33:27.519 --> 00:33:31.200
twenty ten, and Chase confirmed that he was likely the

496
00:33:31.319 --> 00:33:34.880
last person to see Joseph McStay on the day he disappeared.

497
00:33:36.400 --> 00:33:39.200
This does make sense since they met that day for

498
00:33:39.240 --> 00:33:42.279
a few hours at the Chick fil A in redchi Cookamonga.

499
00:33:44.240 --> 00:33:48.480
Further solidifying his potential guilt to investigators, though, were a

500
00:33:48.519 --> 00:33:52.200
couple of statements that Chase made during this interview referring

501
00:33:52.240 --> 00:33:57.000
to Joseph in the past tense. He told detectives Troy

502
00:33:57.079 --> 00:34:00.720
Dugal and Suzanne Fisk, according to the Daily Press, that

503
00:34:00.839 --> 00:34:04.759
Joseph was quote one of my best friends. Joseph doesn't

504
00:34:04.799 --> 00:34:11.639
have any enemies. Everybody loves Joseph. Everybody. Detective Fisk did

505
00:34:11.760 --> 00:34:14.880
ask Chase about this, saying, quote, do you have any

506
00:34:14.920 --> 00:34:18.079
knowledge or information that indicates to you that they are dead?

507
00:34:19.400 --> 00:34:22.480
When married said no, she said quote The reason I

508
00:34:22.559 --> 00:34:25.480
ask is because you have used the past tense about

509
00:34:25.519 --> 00:34:30.559
Joe a couple of times. You said Joe was Typically

510
00:34:30.679 --> 00:34:33.320
people don't do that if they think people are alive.

511
00:34:34.039 --> 00:34:36.280
Any explanation as to why you may have done that.

512
00:34:38.159 --> 00:34:40.679
Chase explained that he wasn't sure why he used the

513
00:34:40.719 --> 00:34:43.760
past tense, but admitted he feared more than once that

514
00:34:43.800 --> 00:34:48.280
the Mixstays were deceased. Apparently, Chase, at the time of

515
00:34:48.320 --> 00:34:52.760
this interview also had an outstanding warrant for his arrest

516
00:34:52.880 --> 00:34:55.719
for failing to serve the final twenty three days of

517
00:34:55.760 --> 00:34:59.599
a forty six day sentence for a commercial burglary charge.

518
00:35:00.599 --> 00:35:02.960
Chase claimed that he had had a heart attack, which

519
00:35:03.000 --> 00:35:05.960
prevented him from turning himself in, but was willing to

520
00:35:06.039 --> 00:35:09.480
risk arrest to talk to police because finding Joseph and

521
00:35:09.559 --> 00:35:13.639
his family was so important to him. This was not

522
00:35:13.719 --> 00:35:17.440
the only charge he had on his record, though Chase

523
00:35:17.480 --> 00:35:21.320
had been arrested and charged with multiple crimes since nineteen

524
00:35:21.400 --> 00:35:27.800
seventy seven that included grant larceny, criminal trespass, multiple burglaries,

525
00:35:27.960 --> 00:35:32.480
and receiving stolen property charges, as well as parole violations

526
00:35:32.559 --> 00:35:37.880
and driving with a suspended license. It is worth mentioning, though,

527
00:35:37.960 --> 00:35:42.800
that none of the charges involved violent crimes. Chase and

528
00:35:42.920 --> 00:35:46.159
Joseph's relationship was also not as great as he made

529
00:35:46.199 --> 00:35:50.320
it seem. According to Dan Cavanagh, Chase was on the

530
00:35:50.440 --> 00:35:54.320
verge of being fired by Joseph for less than satisfactory

531
00:35:54.360 --> 00:35:58.039
work and for failing to pay back over thirty thousand

532
00:35:58.119 --> 00:36:01.840
dollars in money given to him by Joseph to cover

533
00:36:02.039 --> 00:36:07.920
Chase's gambling debts. According to kavanaughh Chase had a serious

534
00:36:08.039 --> 00:36:12.440
gambling problem and Joseph was constantly bailing him out of trouble.

535
00:36:13.480 --> 00:36:17.079
He also owed the Irs over twenty thousand dollars in

536
00:36:17.239 --> 00:36:22.840
unpaid taxes. Dan claimed that Summer was really pushing for

537
00:36:22.960 --> 00:36:28.119
Chase to be fired, but Chase alleged that this wasn't true.

538
00:36:28.880 --> 00:36:32.559
In fact, he claimed that if Summer wanted him fired,

539
00:36:33.199 --> 00:36:36.519
it was because Joseph had come to Chase with concerns

540
00:36:36.559 --> 00:36:41.679
that she was poisoning him. Prior to his death. Joseph

541
00:36:41.760 --> 00:36:45.519
had fallen mysteriously ill and was suffering from a really

542
00:36:45.599 --> 00:36:50.199
bad case of vertigo. Patrick confirmed that Joseph had been

543
00:36:50.199 --> 00:36:52.599
in and out of the hospital, but no one could

544
00:36:52.679 --> 00:36:55.920
say what was wrong with him. While Dan was pointing

545
00:36:55.920 --> 00:36:59.000
the finger at Chase, though Chase was pointing it right

546
00:36:59.079 --> 00:37:03.559
back at Dan. He was convinced that Kavanaugh was guilty

547
00:37:03.719 --> 00:37:07.119
and even told police that if he were to kill anyone,

548
00:37:07.400 --> 00:37:12.159
it would have been Dan Cavanaugh. Dan's claims were not

549
00:37:12.360 --> 00:37:16.599
the only thing that police had though. Police had also

550
00:37:16.719 --> 00:37:20.360
uncovered that Chase had used Joseph's business account to write

551
00:37:20.440 --> 00:37:25.199
himself checks totaling thousands of dollars on multiple days after

552
00:37:25.280 --> 00:37:29.440
the family was confirmed to be missing. These checks were

553
00:37:29.440 --> 00:37:32.960
written on the fifth and eighth of February of twenty ten,

554
00:37:33.599 --> 00:37:36.880
and police learned that on the first Chase was added

555
00:37:36.880 --> 00:37:42.079
as a vendor on Joseph's quick book account. Throughout February

556
00:37:42.079 --> 00:37:46.199
and March, thousands of dollars were withdrawn from different ATMs

557
00:37:46.280 --> 00:37:52.760
under Joseph's name utilizing this account. According to Chase, Joseph

558
00:37:52.840 --> 00:37:55.360
was the one that wanted Chase put on the account,

559
00:37:55.480 --> 00:37:59.760
and Joseph had at least according to Chase, given permission

560
00:37:59.800 --> 00:38:02.000
for her him to call on his behalf to have

561
00:38:02.159 --> 00:38:06.000
the account moved to a desktop application called QuickBooks Pro,

562
00:38:06.760 --> 00:38:10.920
which is an offline service to prevent it from being hacked.

563
00:38:11.760 --> 00:38:14.159
And there is a theory for why this was done,

564
00:38:14.199 --> 00:38:18.400
which I'll cover in the trial. Chase alleges that Joseph

565
00:38:18.440 --> 00:38:22.760
had him call because due to this mystery illness, sitting

566
00:38:22.760 --> 00:38:27.480
on the phone was causing him extreme dizziness. Police also

567
00:38:27.599 --> 00:38:31.320
had DNA from the mix Days Azuzu that they alleged

568
00:38:31.440 --> 00:38:34.599
placed Chase in the car at the time of their murder.

569
00:38:36.320 --> 00:38:39.480
During his interview in twenty ten, Chase told police he

570
00:38:39.599 --> 00:38:43.559
had never driven the car, but in twenty fourteen he

571
00:38:43.719 --> 00:38:46.760
said he may have been in it two to three times,

572
00:38:46.800 --> 00:38:52.360
including on February fourth. Police found trace amounts of his

573
00:38:52.480 --> 00:38:56.320
DNA on the steering wheel, the gearshift, and the center console,

574
00:38:56.440 --> 00:38:58.719
on the dials for the radio and the air conditioner.

575
00:39:00.599 --> 00:39:04.480
Chase's DNA was not found anywhere else on or in

576
00:39:04.519 --> 00:39:08.920
the trooper, not on the door handles, the seatbelt, the windows,

577
00:39:09.559 --> 00:39:15.360
Nowhere You could reasonably assume that this DNA transfer happened

578
00:39:15.480 --> 00:39:19.239
after Chase and Joseph maybe shook hands after the meeting

579
00:39:19.280 --> 00:39:25.119
that they had speaking of white utility trucks. Sam Bernardino.

580
00:39:25.199 --> 00:39:29.599
Police had uncovered the surveillance footage originally discovered in twenty ten,

581
00:39:30.119 --> 00:39:32.199
where the partial view of the back of the white

582
00:39:32.239 --> 00:39:34.960
truck could be seen leaving the Mixday residence on the

583
00:39:35.039 --> 00:39:39.400
night they were killed. This could have been the Mixday's

584
00:39:39.400 --> 00:39:42.800
a zuzu. It's hard to tell, but it also could

585
00:39:42.800 --> 00:39:45.880
have been a white utility truck that belonged to Chase Merritt,

586
00:39:46.760 --> 00:39:50.639
though he wasn't the only person that owned one. Dan

587
00:39:50.760 --> 00:39:55.880
Cavanaugh and Michael McStay, Joseph's brother, owned white utility trucks

588
00:39:55.920 --> 00:40:00.760
as well. Unfortunately for Chase, police had an another strong

589
00:40:00.880 --> 00:40:07.400
piece of evidence, albeit still circumstantial, against him. Police pulled

590
00:40:07.400 --> 00:40:10.440
his cell phone records and saw that two days after

591
00:40:10.480 --> 00:40:13.400
the mix Days were murdered, his phone pinged off of

592
00:40:13.440 --> 00:40:16.960
a cell phone tower near Victorville and Oro Grande, where

593
00:40:17.000 --> 00:40:21.199
the family had been buried. Police determined that his phone

594
00:40:21.239 --> 00:40:24.360
had been offer a significant amount of time between four

595
00:40:24.440 --> 00:40:27.199
pm and nine to four pm on the day the

596
00:40:27.239 --> 00:40:31.039
Mixdays were murdered, which they theorized meant that this was

597
00:40:31.079 --> 00:40:33.719
when he killed the family and had turned his phone

598
00:40:33.760 --> 00:40:39.360
off to prevent being tracked. On February sixth, his phone

599
00:40:39.400 --> 00:40:42.079
was pinging off of the Victorville Tower from eleven thirty

600
00:40:42.119 --> 00:40:47.000
am to one thirty pm. When Chase was asked about this,

601
00:40:47.360 --> 00:40:49.840
he didn't have a solid answer as to why he

602
00:40:49.960 --> 00:40:53.800
was in that area at that time, but he ultimately

603
00:40:53.840 --> 00:40:56.559
would claim that he was visiting his sister, Wanita, who

604
00:40:56.559 --> 00:40:59.880
lives in Orol Grande, or he may have been visiting

605
00:41:00.079 --> 00:41:05.960
his brother also in that area in Hisperia. When police

606
00:41:06.000 --> 00:41:09.760
go visit Wanita, she claimed that she hadn't seen nor

607
00:41:09.960 --> 00:41:14.079
really spoken to her younger brother in almost five years,

608
00:41:14.920 --> 00:41:20.199
and this claim is relevant. Later, almost one year to

609
00:41:20.400 --> 00:41:23.599
the day that the mcsday's bodies were discovered. In November

610
00:41:23.639 --> 00:41:28.639
of twenty fourteen, police, based on this evidence, arrest Chase

611
00:41:28.719 --> 00:41:32.679
Merrit for the murders of Joseph Summer Chiani and Joseph

612
00:41:32.760 --> 00:41:38.760
Junior MXDAE. Their working theory was that Chase, terrified of

613
00:41:38.840 --> 00:41:41.320
losing his job as well as the money that was

614
00:41:41.360 --> 00:41:45.679
consistently coming to him from Joseph, killed the family after

615
00:41:45.719 --> 00:41:48.280
being told at the meeting that he was being fired.

616
00:41:49.400 --> 00:41:53.480
Some even speculate that the overkill evident on Summer's remains

617
00:41:53.519 --> 00:41:57.239
indicate that Chase was furious over her putting the idea

618
00:41:57.320 --> 00:42:01.760
to let him go in Joseph's head. Police believed that

619
00:42:01.880 --> 00:42:04.280
Chase had gone to the Mixedday home and killed the

620
00:42:04.320 --> 00:42:09.039
family there, even though there was no blood evidence to

621
00:42:09.159 --> 00:42:12.119
be found or any real signs of a struggle in

622
00:42:12.159 --> 00:42:16.079
the home, calling his own phone from Joseph's to try

623
00:42:16.079 --> 00:42:18.679
and make it seem as if he wasn't in Fulbrook.

624
00:42:19.800 --> 00:42:23.800
He then, according to this theory, transported the bodies from

625
00:42:23.840 --> 00:42:27.079
the home and kept them hidden for two days before

626
00:42:27.119 --> 00:42:31.239
burying the family in the desert. He then returned a

627
00:42:31.280 --> 00:42:34.320
few days later to move the family car to Sanya

628
00:42:34.360 --> 00:42:37.239
Sidro to make it look as if they had voluntarily

629
00:42:37.360 --> 00:42:41.400
left the country. Now, when I initially set out to

630
00:42:41.400 --> 00:42:44.480
cover this case again, and as I said in the beginning,

631
00:42:44.880 --> 00:42:48.400
I was so convinced I would get this done in

632
00:42:48.480 --> 00:42:54.320
one episode. However, that is not the case. I have

633
00:42:54.599 --> 00:42:59.039
so much more information to add in regards to the trial.

634
00:43:00.119 --> 00:43:04.360
You will hear all about the case against Chase Merritt

635
00:43:04.480 --> 00:43:07.280
on next week's chapter of the Book of the Dead.

636
00:43:09.320 --> 00:43:13.639
As always, I thank you so much for listening, and

637
00:43:13.800 --> 00:43:18.239
I hope you have a wonderful week, and I will

638
00:43:18.239 --> 00:43:20.960
see you in the next chapter of the Book of

639
00:43:20.960 --> 00:43:28.039
the Dead. Bye, guys, Another page closed. But the story

640
00:43:28.199 --> 00:43:32.480
isn't over. For the families left behind, the pain doesn't

641
00:43:32.599 --> 00:43:36.079
end when the headline's fade. And for the victims, we

642
00:43:36.199 --> 00:43:40.400
owe them more than silence for our on solved cases.

643
00:43:41.000 --> 00:43:43.840
If you have any information, please reach out to local

644
00:43:43.880 --> 00:43:47.360
authorities or visit our show notes for links and resources.

645
00:43:48.280 --> 00:43:54.440
Someone out there knows something, maybe it's you. Thank you

646
00:43:54.519 --> 00:43:57.159
for listening to the Book of the Dead. If this

647
00:43:57.280 --> 00:43:59.840
story moved or spoke to you in some way, to

648
00:44:00.039 --> 00:44:06.079
talk about it, share it, Keep their names alive. Until

649
00:44:06.119 --> 00:44:12.199
next time, I'm Courtney Liso. Stay safe, stay curious, and

650
00:44:12.239 --> 00:44:16.719
stay vigilant, and remember the dead may be gone, but

651
00:44:16.800 --> 00:44:18.960
their stories will not be forgotten.