David Stone
Real Name: David Stone
Nicknames: No known nicknames
Location: Granite Peak, New Mexico
Date: October 31, 1988
Bio
Occupation: Stock Market Analyst
Date of Birth: 1959
Height: Unrevealed
Weight: Unrevealed
Marital Status: Single
Characteristics: Unrevealed
Case
Details: David Stone was a twenty-nine-year-old successful stock market analyst from La Jolla, California, who was deep into the New Age movement as he sought spiritual guidance. For years, he had struggled with control and anger issues, which seemed to come to a head on October 28, 1988. That day, he held a party at his apartment when he got into an argument with one of his friends. He then began attacking the friend, hitting him repeatedly.
After this violent outburst, David told friends and family of his behavior and said he ought to go on a walkabout to reflect on his conduct. He said he would return in a few days. According to deputy Sheriff Bill Cavaliere, the investigating officer, on the morning of Halloween 1988, he walked into the desert, 145 miles east of Tucson, Arizona. At around dawn, a farmer spotted him walking along a dirt road. The farmer briefly chatted with David, as it was seldom he saw tourists in this remote part of Arizona. David told the farmer that he was looking for the "beast". Throughout the day, several local residents had seen him around the desert. He was acting strangely, talking to himself and walking through rough terrain. Five days later, his car was found abandoned along a desolate stretch of New Mexico Highway 80, fourteen miles south of Roadforks, New Mexico.
David's family believes that he went on a "vision quest" which is common among people in the New Age Movement. In this quest, the person goes on a journey to learn more about him or herself.
David's route after leaving his car
It was discovered that David had left several mysterious clues after he vanished. These clues appeared to relate to the New Age movement. First, he had left his car near pyramid-shaped mountains, and pyramids were important symbols in the movement. As a search for him began, his trail headed northwest from his car towards Granite Peak. Searchers found a pyramid of rocks surrounded by a triangle. On the next day of searching, another pyramid was found, and next to it was David's watch and two quarters. Three miles to the north, searchers found a string of numbers written in the sand. They realized the series of numbers were Fibonacci numbers, which are often used by engineers and stock market analysts. However, instead of 21 ending the sequence, David had mistakenly written 18. It may have a way of David leaving a cryptic message, as when he was a college football player he owned the number 18 jersey. However, as David's car was found close to the number 18 mile marker on Highway 80, investigators think it may have been a coded distress signal.
Bloodhounds tracked David's scent back to Highway 80. However, they stopped at a highway intersection with Interstate 10, which was thirteen miles north of where his car was found. While looking through items in his car, his parents found a strange business card in a pocketbook Bible. It belonged to a man named Tony Ballesteros. Ballesteros was interrogated by police, but claims he never met David. Ballesteros was camping with friends, and it was likely the business card fell out of his pocket onto the ground, and was claimed by David while he briefly crossed through the campground on his excursion.
David's parents also found a strange note that read:
They think the WORD is in the safe. Six knives in Rob's room. Yous buys your tea and yous take your chances Halloween.
Halloween just happened to be the day that David vanished. To this day, nobody knows what happened to him or why he acted so strangely before he disappeared.
Suspects: None known
Extra Notes: This case first aired on the October 31, 1990 episode.
Results: Unresolved. In February 1992, two hikers discovered David's remains in the desert near Granite Gap, New Mexico. This is the same area where he left behind several clues before he vanished. Although police have been unable to determine when, how, or why he died, there was no evidence of foul play in his death. While some believe David may have been unlucky enough to encounter drug smugglers who murdered him, as the New Mexico backcountry is a choice location for smuggling and civilians have been murdered to protect shipments, police have chalked up David's death to dehydration and prolonged exposure to the outdoors, a.k.a. "death by misadventure".
Links: