Logan Drew Schiendelman was born on June 27, 1996, in the Washington state capital, Olympia. It was the fruit of a fleeting affair between a businessman from Saudi Arabia and an American woman. The man met the boy's mother, Hannah, while on a business trip. He then left the United States before the birth of his son and had no contact with him.
Schiendelman was raised by his maternal grandmother, Virginia "Ginnie" Gebo. The woman lived in Tumwater, Washington. Virginia became the legal guardian of Logan and his older half-sister Chloe when their mother decided to move to Seattle. The woman began her studies at the art school there. So Logan grew up without parents.
As a teenager, he attended Tumwater High School, where he became the star of the school's American football team. Despite the fact that he devoted a lot of time to sports, he also found time to study. He was seen as an exemplary student. In addition, he had a reputation as a sociable boy who quickly made friends.
However, the teenager's life was not perfect. According to Ginnie, her grandson was going through an identity crisis because of his ethnicity. Logan's grandmother was white, and his mother was mulatto. The boy's grandfather was black. Schiendelman's father was from the Middle East. Shortly before his disappearance, the 19-year-old managed to meet his maternal relatives. Looking through old photographs, he saw a picture of his grandfather and uncle. He was glad to finally see someone who looked like him.
Apparently, the grandmother did not want to tell him about the family members from the grandfather's side, and the boy was very curious about it. Nor was Ginnie aware of the aforementioned reunion of her grandson with other family members. In their opinion, the woman would be angry if she found out. Logan also had a difficult relationship with his half-sister. Apparently, the two didn't like each other. Usually they tried to avoid each other, but there were times when there were quarrels between them, and even fights and the use of physical force.
After graduating from high school in 2015, Logan entered Washington State University. The university was about 480 km from the place of residence. Schiendelman completed his first year of college and then dropped out of school. He moved back in with his grandmother and half-sister.
Gebo recalled that after returning, the grandson was lost and did not know what to do next with his life. Logan worked part-time, among others in the laundry and on her aunt's farm. He reportedly smoked marijuana regularly, which, according to relatives, caused him paranoia. The 19-year-old also sometimes had the feeling that someone was watching him through his bedroom window. Logan also felt several times that someone was following him. Does this remind you of something? Because I have associations with the Lars Mittank case.
Additionally, Schiendelman seemed withdrawn. He broke off old acquaintances, and did not make new friends during his studies. The vast majority of students at the university were white. Allegedly, Logan was to be the victim of racist incidents. That might explain why he dropped out of college after a year.
On the morning of May 19, 2016 (Thursday), Logan was talking to his grandmother. The woman later described that her grandson was nervous, which was unusual for him. According to Ginnie, the 19-year-old also claimed to have had an "epiphany". But Gebo was rushing to work at the Washington State Department of Ecology. She suggested that they finish this conversation in the evening.
But Logan did not come home that night. Sources say that the grandmother tracked down the location of the 19-year-old's mobile phone. On this basis, she obtained information that he was somewhere near Olympia. The boy's mother lived nearby. So Ginnie called her daughter. However, she said that her son did not come to her.
The next day, the grandson was still missing. Victoria wanted to report him missing but found out that the Thurston County Police Department was already closed. It was not until Monday, May 23 that the services were notified of Logan's disappearance. Grandma found out an interesting thing then.
Schiendelman's car, a black 1996 Chrysler Sebring, was found on May 20 (the day after their last conversation). The vehicle was parked on the shoulder of Interstate 5 between Tumwater and Maytown. The parking place of the car was about 30 km from Ginnie's house.
The 19-year-old's personal belongings, including a wallet, several food bags, and a mobile phone, were found in the car. Schiendelman's wallet contained a debit card, driver's license, and $25 in cash. However, there was no trace of Schiendelman anywhere.
Shortly after Logan's disappearance, several witnesses turned themselves in to the police. One of them was a woman who was driving on Highway 5 on the morning of May 20. She claimed to have seen the missing man with two white men who were standing in the back of the car.
She described one of them as being about 183 cm tall, blond and of slim build. He was wearing a T-shirt and denim shorts that were too small for him. The other man also had blond hair, but it was longer, shoulder-length. He was wearing a flannel shirt and jeans. In June 2017, law enforcement published a composite portrait of one of the men.
The vehicle the woman noticed was probably Logan's. It was parked on the right shoulder of the interstate near exit 95. The woman also added that she saw the car in the same spot as she drove home that evening. This time she didn't notice anyone around. But she remembered that the hood of the car was up.
That same day, around 2:00 p.m., three people called 911 to report strange driver behavior. According to witnesses, the driver of the car performed strange maneuvers, changing direction several times. The vehicle was spotted near where Logan's Chrysler was later discovered.
Witnesses testified that the car finally hit a concrete barrier and stopped. I don't know about you, but this thread reminds me of the Bryce Laspisa case. We also dealt with a crashed car in the case of the disappearance of Maura Murray, Brianna Maitland and Leah Roberts.
A passing lorry driver reported seeing a white man with brown or red hair jump out of the vehicle on the passenger side and run into the nearby woods. This description does not fit Logan or the two men seen with the missing man. Was the witness wrong in this case? It is difficult to say because it was not possible to reach the man who allegedly ran into the forest.
But this is not the end of unusual sightings of witnesses. Another interesting clue emerged. The police were contacted by a person who reportedly saw a naked teenager near the highway on the evening of May 20. Unfortunately, his identity could not be established, although it was believed that he could be Logan.
The missing man's uncle, Mike Ware, helped organize the search for his nephew. The man was a retired Thurston County Sheriff. The search was carried out within a radius of about 3 km from the place where Logan's car was discovered. Particular attention was paid to the nearby forests. Tracking dogs and planes also took part in the action. Unfortunately, we couldn't find clues that would help solve the mystery.
Based on the location of Logan's phone, investigators reconstructed the route he took on May 20. From these findings, the 19-year-old was driving toward Interstate 5, heading south. Then he suddenly turned around and headed north. Then he changed direction again and drove south on the Interstate. Finally, it stopped where the vehicle had been found. This strange, even frenzied ride corresponded to the observations of witnesses. The question that still remained to be answered was why Logan (or whoever was driving his car) was driving like this? Unfortunately, this is still unknown.
It is also worth adding that at the beginning of the investigation, the law enforcement authorities interrogated the boyfriend of the missing man's half-sister. It has been established that he moved into Ginnie's house shortly before Logan disappeared. Reportedly, there were quarrels between the two young men. Chloe's boyfriend was also given a polygraph test. On this basis, however, his connection with the disappearance of Schiendelman was excluded.
The 19-year-old's family also hired a private detective. However, he wasn't able to do much. It turned out that the interior of the missing car was not secured. All potential evidence is gone.
Possible theories:
Since Logan was seen in the company of two men, it is likely that he may have been kidnapped and even killed by them. Given that Schiendelman regularly smoked marijuana, he probably knew drug dealers. Perhaps he offended one of them by delaying, for example, payment for the goods. This is, of course, a hypothesis, but it cannot be completely ruled out.
For me personally, it is most likely that Logan suffered from some undiagnosed mental illness. They usually appear at a young age (18-30 years). Schiendelman's impression that someone is following or watching him may indicate psychosis. The same may have happened with the strange behavior on the road on the last day he was seen. Also, the last words to grandma about the "revelation" seem to fit this pattern.
Unfortunately, to this day it has not been possible to determine what happened to the missing 19-year-old. Let's hope that one day we will know the solution to this puzzling case.
No comments:
Post a Comment