The Disappearance of Michael Vanzandt
For this case I watched an episode of Disappeared. It’s season 9 episode 9, titled ‘Just Out of Sight.’
A 36 year old father of three disappears after a night out with friends.
Background
Michael David Vanzandt was born on January 17, 1980. He was born and raised in Pleasant Lake, Michigan. His parents divorced when he was 2, and he, alongside his two brothers, and step-brother were raised by his mom Robin.
Michael enlisted in the Air Force in 1999, and served 12 years. He met his wife Krishain in 2000, while they were both stationed in Japan. They married in 2001, had three kids, and the couple mutually separated in 2014.
Michael was described as an amazing dad. He would do anything for his kids, and his loved ones. He was also someone who loved the water, which I will discuss more as this case goes on.
Michael, with his kids, Keaton, Jayden and Kyleah.
A Night Out
Michael was really excited about his future. Although he and Krishain were going through a divorce, he had just found out that he was approved for a mortgage for a new home.
On Saturday, March 5, 2016, Michael watched his son Jayden play basketball, had lunch with the kids, and dropped them off at Krishain’s around 3pm. He had plans to go to Hermosa Beach that night, which was about a two hour drive from where he lived in Lancaster. He had plans with his friend Jamie from work, and a few of her friends to watch some UFC fights and go bar hopping.
Michael spoke to his brothers Tyler and Charles, and an ex-girlfriend named Monique, while he was driving. When he arrived in Hermosa Beach, he parked his car in the parking lot of the Quality Inn, and went to meet the friends at a bar called the Underground.
Charles, Tyler and Michael
The group stayed at the bar until about 10pm, and went to an area called Pier Plaza, where several bars were located. The group walked to a bar called American Junkie, and had to stand in line. Jamie was interviewed in this episode, and said that Michael didn’t like to stand in line, and became impatient. He told the group that he was going to go next door to the liquor store to use the bathroom. This would be the last time anyone heard or saw from Michael.
Investigation Timeline
A little while after Michael went to use the bathroom, Jamie and her friends decided to leave the American Junkie to go to a different bar. Jamie tried calling and texting Michael, but it went to voicemail. We will later learn that many people tried getting a hold of Michael, but his phone had died.
Around 2am, the group of friends left Pier Plaza, and went back to the Quality Inn. Mike’s car was still in the parking lot, but he was nowhere to be found.
The next day, Sunday, Jamie drove back to Lancaster. She said she spent the entire day calling jails and hospitals to see if Michael had maybe gotten too drunk or injured somehow. However, no one had seen or picked up Michael. Jamie also went to Michael’s apartment that night, but he wasn’t there, and neither was his car.
On Monday, March 7, Michael’s son had a dentist appointment. He was supposed to drop off some insurance information at Krishain’s, but he never showed up. Krishain tried to get a hold of Mike, but his phone went to voicemail. Krishain reached out to Tyler and Monique, and Monique agreed to go over to the apartment. She also discovered that his car was missing, and nothing in his apartment had been touched.
Krishain and Jamie both called Michael’s work and discovered that he hadn’t shown up to work. Jamie filed a missing persons report in the county that Michael worked in. Jamie also talked to Krishain and explained the events from that Saturday night.
Monique drove to Hermosa Beach and hoped to get answers for herself. She first went to the Quality Inn, and discovered his car was still there. It was locked, but she saw his key card for work inside. Monique then went to the Hermosa police department, and they told her that she couldn’t file a missing persons report until he was missing for x amount of time, since he was an adult. Monique left Hermosa Beach feeling confused and conflicted.
Michael’s loved ones spread his disappearance on social media, and it went viral. This also meant that Krishain had to tell her kids that their dad was missing.
The Surveillance Footage
On March 8, Michael’s brothers, Charles and Tyler, Krishain and Monique went to the Hermosa Beach police department. They were told that the police would contact all other government agencies in the area, and check the areas that Michael was last seen in.
Missing persons flyers were put up, and everyone spoke to local businesses to see if anyone had seen anything. Unfortunately, it didn’t lead to any tips.
The police spoke to Jamie, and the three other friends that were with Michael that night. They all had the same story, they were out at the bars, and Michael left to use the bathroom.
The police obtained Michael’s phone records, and they discovered his phone last pinged in the Hermosa Beach area, and it was last used at 10:15pm.
On March 9, the police thought that they had discovered a man matching Michael’s description on the surveillance footage from Pier Plaza. The man is seen with a man who resembled Randall, one of Jamie’s friends. The two men are seen hugging, talking and then walking off with a group of about five other people. The police tried contacting Randall, he didn’t respond to them until March 11. He told the police the same story as Jamie, and never mentioned meeting up with Michael later on in the night.
On March 12, the police discovered that the two men in the surveillance footage weren’t Michael and Randall. Randall was eliminated as a suspect.
A Possible Theory
The police and Michael’s family decided to move the search to the other end of the Pier Plaza, on the beach. His loved ones feared that he ended up in the water, after a night of drinking, which he had done before. Tyler and Krishain both recalled nights that Michael had done just that.
Charles searched the beach with a metal detector. Tyler and Krishain hired a helicopter to search the area. It didn’t lead to any sign of a body or any of Michael’s items.
Monique used her scanner app on her phone to monitor police radio frequencies. She heard a report of a man that was picked up for being drunk and disorderly in Manhattan Beach. The man they were describing matched Michael’s description, however, Monique said the more they listened the description of the man no longer matched Michael.
What Happened to Michael?
Two weeks after Michael disappeared, the police positively identified Michael on the surveillance footage from Pier Plaza.
The group of friends and Michael are seen walking to get in line at the American Junkie bar. Then, Michael walks to Robert’s Liquor store to use the bathroom. However, he was unable to use the bathroom, and is seen walking out and turning to leave Pier Plaza.
Michael returns a little while later, and his friends are no longer in like at American Junkie. Michael can be seen circling around and searching for them. He also walked back into the liquor store and purchased a small bottle of whiskey. At 11:27pm, Michael is seen on the surveillance footage for the last time.
Eleven days after Michael disappeared, Tyler received an alert on his phone about a possible body being found in a marina. However, it ended up being some kind of wildlife.
At the end of March 2016, the Hermosa Beach police told Krishain and Tyler that the case was still an open investigation, but that “all proactive measures have been taken.” These are the words Tyler used towards the end of the episode.
Other
Michael’s loved ones closed Michael’s apartment and packed up his belongings. They are hoping that they will one day get answers. Tyler said he believes that Michael either drowned or is somehow still out there in the world. In August 2016, he moved to Hermosa Beach to be closer to Michael’s kids.
FINAL THOUGHTS
My heart absolutely breaks for the kids, and Michael’s loved ones. It must be devastating to think you’re going to get some kind of answer as to what happened, and then have it all taken away. I really hope that one day they do actually get answers as to what happened, or just find any kind of evidence.
It seems that everyone believes Michael drowned that night, but I feel like something would have been found. I hope Michael’s case doesn’t get lost in the mix of all the other missing persons cases out there. His family deserves answers, as do all the families of missing people.
Sources
https://disappearedblog.com/michael-david-vanzandt/
https://charleyproject.org/case/michael-david-vanzandt
https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/05/07/missing-in-hermosa-beach-what-happened-to-mike-vanzandt/
https://patch.com/california/hermosabeach/new-video-shows-missing-dads-last-moments-hermosa-beach
