In short
Up and Vanished - Episode 5: Finding Jon
Podcast Overview Host: Payne Lindsey Season Focus: Investigating the disappearances in Nome, Alaska, particularly focusing on Florence Okpealuk and Joseph Balderas.
Episode Summary In this episode, titled "Finding Jon," host Payne Lindsey and his team delve deeper into the mysterious figure known as "Oregon John," the last person confirmed to have seen the missing woman Florence Okpealuk. The episode unfolds as they utilize internet sleuthing to track down John, leading them into a complex web of social media, potential danger, and investigative journalism.
Key Points
Introduction to Oregon John
- Role in the Case: Oregon John is the last known person to have seen Florence. He was found to have her belongings and has a questionable background, including a long rap sheet with serious allegations.
- Current Location: Initially believed to have fled to Asia, evidence suggests he remains in Alaska.
Internet Investigation
- Lindsey's team conducts extensive internet research to locate Oregon John, discovering his active presence on social media.
- They identify a connection to a ship within the Alaska Marine Highway System, which could provide clues to his whereabouts.
Planning the Confrontation
- The team devises a plan to approach Oregon John in person while ensuring safety measures are in place.
- They plan to meet him in Kodiak, Alaska, during a scheduled overnight layover of his ship. This strategic timing is crucial for the confrontation.
The Use of a Fake Identity
- Lindsey poses as a character named Eric Gaulding, using a fake Facebook account to engage Oregon John in conversation.
- This tactic allows Lindsey to gather information while maintaining a safe distance from direct confrontation.
Concerns and Precautions
- As the meeting draws closer, Lindsey expresses anxiety about the risks involved in confronting a person with a violent background.
- Conversations with a private investigator provide insight into John's character, warning of potential volatility.
The Final Preparations
- The team prepares for the meeting with a backup person (Cooper) to ensure safety and a more balanced dynamic during the encounter.
- They decide to meet at a public bar rather than at John's home to mitigate risks associated with being in a private space.
Confrontation
- The episode culminates as Lindsey and Cooper prepare to meet Oregon John at a bar in Ketchikan.
- Tension builds with the realization that they are about to confront a key suspect in a serious missing persons case, amplifying the stakes of the meeting.
Conclusion The episode closes with a cliffhanger, as the team is just moments away from meeting Oregon John. This encounter represents a pivotal moment in the investigation into Florence Okpealuk’s disappearance, emphasizing the dangers and complexities involved in seeking the truth.
Key Takeaways
- Investigation Methods: The use of social media and internet sleuthing is highlighted as a modern tool for investigative work.
- Safety Protocols: Emphasizes the need for safety and awareness when dealing with potentially dangerous individuals.
- Human Element: The episode provides insight into the psyche of individuals involved in such cases, illustrating the personal and emotional stakes for all parties involved.
Additional Notes
- The episode serves as an engaging blend of true crime storytelling and investigative journalism, showcasing the challenges faced by those seeking justice in cold cases.
- The ethical considerations of using fake identities in investigations are subtly explored, raising questions about the morality of methods used in pursuit of truth.
Follow-Up Listeners are encouraged to tune into the next episode for a continuation of the investigation and insights into the outcomes of the planned confrontation with Oregon John.
Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.
Transcript
Automatic transcript. May contain errors.0:00You're listening to a Tenderfoot TV podcast. The holidays are coming, the mornings are cold, and honestly, I just want my wardrobe to work. That's why I've been all about Quince. Their Mongolian cashmere sweaters, only 50 bucks. They're ridiculously soft, and they look way more expensive than they are. The down jacket I grabbed from Quince has been my go-to this season. It keeps me cozy, looks sharp, and just holds up beautifully. Quince really covers all the essentials that you actually want. I've also started picking up a few gifts. Home, bath, kitchen, travel. They have it all. Get your wardrobe sorted and your gift list handled with Quince.
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1:36Available now, wherever you get your podcasts. Up and Vanished in the Midnight Sun is released every Friday and brought to you absolutely free. But for ad-free listening and exclusive bonuses, subscribe to Tenderfoot Plus at tenderfootplus.com or on Apple Podcasts.
1:57You're listening to Up and Vanished in the Midnight Sun a production of Tenderfoot TV in association with Odyssey The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the individuals participating This podcast also contains subject matter which may not be suitable for everyone Listener discretion is advised
2:27I need to stick to the facts. I need to stick to what we know for sure. And through that, maybe all these other things will start to make sense. If we're sticking with what we know to be 100 % true in this case right now, then that only really leaves one person. Oregon John. It was Oregon John who was the last person to see her that we know about. It was Oregon John who had possession of Flo's things, her shirt, her shoes, her jacket, and her cell phone. He also offered no explanation as to why he had these things. He has since fled town and, to my knowledge, has never returned. And he has a rap sheet in Nome with 93 different incidents on it, including sexual assault, cruelty to animals.
3:18And no matter the level of involvement Org and John may or may not have here, he is, without a doubt, the most central character on the night of Flo's disappearance. And he could very well hold the keys to solving this. So we must talk to Org and John. But I wasn't feeling very confident about that. Everyone I've ever talked to has said he fled Nome years ago and moved somewhere in Asia. Wendy mentioned the Philippines. If that's the case, we're in bad shape here. In the police report on Oregon John that I received from the city, I was able to learn his full name. And so my internet searching began.
4:02And it didn't take long before I found a Facebook profile that seemed to exactly match his physical description. I went deep back in the photos.
4:16There's Gnome. This has to be the guy.
4:39Good morning, Facebook.
4:46Morgan John, a.k.a. Laychon John. Just another beautiful night in Kodiak, Alaska.
5:03He's not in the Philippines. He's right here in Alaska.
5:36From Tinderfoot TV in Atlanta, I'm your host Payne Lindsey, and this is Up and Vanished in the Midnight Sun.
5:51I have his Facebook.
5:56He's in Alaska, but we're in Alaska. This is right in town, right here in between some buildings. Look at this.
6:09Right behind some apartments. Okay, pause that. Yeah. Okay. You can almost see what it says. Damn, it's so blurry. Keystone. Keystone. Hold on. Wow, look at the power of that water. Right behind some apartments.
6:31In his most recent video, he was filming a river in some small Alaskan town behind some building complex. Desperately scanning the video, I noticed a small sign in front of a parking spot. I'm going to screenshot it. I can barely make out what it says. Oh, I see it.
6:53Keystone Chiropractic. Nice.
6:59Okay. Okay, yeah, I found it. A local business in Ketchikan, Alaska.
7:10It looks like it's right next to an apartment complex. If he was going to a chiropractor, you'd think he'd be doing that in a town he lives in. But I guess he could just be visiting. I need more. I feel like he was either going to the chiropractor that day, or he was just right behind his apartment complex looking at the river. There's a bar across the street. He might live there. Yeah. Here's the problem, though. He's moving around everywhere, it seems like. On Facebook, this dude is all over the map. Seward, Homer, Ketchikan, Kodiak.
7:58But all of his pictures are from the vantage point of a ship on water. And it's a pretty big boat. I mean, at least he's posting about it.
8:18I think it's the same ship. Deeper down on Facebook, I found a picture of the actual boat. Okay. And if you zoom in just enough, you can see the name of it. It's going to take us two days to get to him in the first place. We need to know where he's going to be ahead of time.
8:43So let's just Google the name of the boat. Alaska? I don't know. Wait a minute. It's part of the Alaska Marine Highway System. The vessels transport people, freight, and vehicles. But this is also a commercial service. It's like a cargo ship. People have to know when supplies are coming in, right? When supplies are coming into port, right? This is the same ship. Do they post the schedule of every individual ship? Hold on, please tell me this is correct.
9:25They do. Holy shit.
9:32If he actually works on this ship, then this schedule could tell me where he is at all times. Maybe. As long as he's not on vacation or something, he should be wherever this ship is according to this schedule. This is the only information we have to go off of. So my idea here is to try to find out where he's going to be in hopes of being there at the same time. And if I can do that, maybe I'll have the chance to approach him in person and ask him about Florence Okpeolog's disappearance. But these sailing schedules are pretty tight. Four hours here, four hours there, six hours this way, eight hours that way.
10:17And they're back to back all day. I could be in the same location as him and he never leaves that ship. This schedule is like months in advance.
10:30Okay. Unless I could find a date that he's staying overnight somewhere. Okay, Friday the ship takes off at 5.45 p.m. And it doesn't leave again until 12.30 p.m. the following day. In two days, he's going to have the longest break on his sailing schedule that he has all month. A full 12 hours. An overnight stay in Kodiak, Alaska. Which means that he's sleeping overnight on that ship. We have to go there. This is absolutely our best bet. I would have to assume that at some point he gets off that ship. We can't afford to fly to a place he just left. But if we were just there ahead of time, we could probably get him.
11:23That's the move. That's the move. If we're going to do it, we've got to leave now. As I'm booking flights and looking for places to stay, I have this anxious feeling coming over me. God forbid he's not there for whatever damn reason. What if we do all of this, and he never even leaves this port? It's just a big risk. My goal is not to just say, hey, I want to sit down and actually talk to him. And for that to happen, I need to know he has some time on his hands. At least with this plan, I know how much time he has. I think. We have to turn around and leave 7 a.m. latest the next morning, so we're going to be running off little to no sleep if we sleep at all.
12:16What felt like a consistent pattern, the same ship with the same name, the same cities over and over, and they all match the schedule on the Alaska Marine Highway website. But what I don't like about this is that he hasn't posted on Facebook in over a week. For the past seven days or so, he hasn't posted anything at all. It could be nothing. But on the off chance he doesn't work there anymore, something happened, anything, this would be a total waste of time that I'd rather spend in the right direction. It's just a big risk. I need to figure out if he's really going to be there or not. Or we just got to come up with a different plan entirely.
13:03What I need to know is where he's going to be. Well, I don't have a crystal ball. And I feel like I've maximized all of my internet sleuthing here. I don't know anyone who knows this person directly. And I know in my gut, if I just reach out as me right now, there's no way he's responding.
13:23When I was a kid growing up, in the summer of sixth grade, one of my best friends Jeremy and I came up with a pact. It was silly at the time, but we swore to each other that if we ever got in trouble, that we'd have fake names in the back of our head to say quickly enough to somebody to seem real. The name that I chose was Eric Gaulding. I know, it doesn't even sound real. And ever since Up and Vanished Season 1, I've been operating a fake Facebook account behind the scenes, just poking around, lurking. As I sit here, wondering how on earth I can physically find Oregon John, my light bulb goes off, so I took a shot in the dark.
14:05Okay, so I just messaged John from my fake Facebook account. I simply said, hey John, do you miss Alaska? and to my surprise you responded saying i'm there right now i'm only up here temporarily i just said nice where are you off to next anywhere they pay me to go anywhere they pay me to go he's talking to me and he's talking to a complete stranger, which I think is a little weird. He's talking to me on Facebook, but he thinks I'm somebody else. But I still have no earthly idea where this person is on a damn map. I tried to keep it going for a minute, but I knew that any second now, he was going to be like, who the hell is this?
15:00Okay, I'm going to give it a beat here before I look way too suspicious.
15:09I feel like I'm playing with fire here, but all I want to know is what happened to Florence Okpialik. Every person that I've spoken to brings up Oregon John. I mean, I don't know how I can ask him in a roundabout way when his next off days are.
15:35Before I knew it, our Facebook messages were getting friendlier than ever. I was inching closer and closer, just trying to find out where exactly he'd be in 36 hours. A big ask as a stranger. I'm just going to keep playing along here. Okay, I just asked him, do you get to explore the town at night, or do you have to stay on the ship, or how does it work? Well, normally my shift don't start till 11 a.m., so we'll be pulling into port in the morning. I got a few hours to walk around, and I've been to Kodiak, Seaward, Sitka, all them places. I think we're good. He's going to get off that ship. Chances are he's walking off that ship, at least for a few moments.
16:26But to be there to confront him, I'm going to have to wait for hours, which means I need to get there now. It depends on what time we pull into port and what time we leave. But no, they don't make you stay on the ship. If you're off duty, you're off duty. So he's going to be in Kodiak, Alaska for a 12-hour period on Friday. It seems like a sure shot. almost too much so. Either way, we're rocking with it.
17:02For the past 12 hours, John has continuously texted me. We're talking about Kodiak, and I'm still using my fake Facebook profile. I don't know why he hasn't asked who I am yet. Okay, he just said, they have a really nice class 3 gun store in Kodiak. They sell suppressors and Philado machine guns. It's pretty cool. No way. He just sent me a video of himself.
17:40Charging handle? Oh yeah! Oh, baby! Shit. My shoulder.
18:00I... I... I... Holy shit, that's a monster! Jesus.
18:13I want to say he's just showing it off. He's bragging. trying to be buddy-buddy with me or something. Okay, he just sent a picture of another gun. Okay, he likes his guns, and he wants to show them to me. Maybe he just wants to be friends with a total stranger on the internet. Then he sent me a picture of another gun. And another one. But what's the message here? Maybe we're just bonding. my mom would say, stop what you're doing right now. We're definitely meeting in public, but I have to keep going. He's got a lot of big guns, but there's no way they let them on the ship, right? It's his job.
19:02That's where he works. Maybe in a weird way, this might be the safest place I could ever meet him.
Read the full transcript
19:13So here's the plan. I'm about to board a flight to Seattle, which then takes me to Anchorage. Then I'm taking another flight to Kodiak, Alaska. And in 36 hours, I'm going to be waiting at the dock where his ship is going to be. It's time to tighten up and figure this shit out.
19:33Around 10 hours later, we landed in Anchorage.
19:40I was trying to do as much preparation as possible. Who is Oregon John? And what the hell am I getting myself into? When we got to the Airbnb in Anchorage, we had about 12 hours before our next flight in the morning. And through some serious digging, I found someone who knows Oregon John better than almost anyone. So well that I can't tell you at all who he is. I swore that I wouldn't. But his insight is very real and very helpful in this moment. I want to know his whole backstory. Who is this guy? What am I dealing with? Is this going to be okay? I talked to him on the phone, transcribed the call, and I had my good friend Rob Ricotta read it verbatim.
20:24This is what he said.
20:29My understanding was that he was the last person confirmed to have seen her at his tent on, I guess it was West Beach. He had a pattern of, I mean, he was a real piece of work. But he was a Navy veteran, I believe, who had some degree of health issues that sort of made him a little slow and awkward walking. Still a strong guy underneath that.
21:00He had a civil protective order filed against him from an ex-girlfriend who was also a younger Native Alaskan woman.
21:11they had some sort of like on again off again relationship where he was providing with alcohol and marijuana and i'm not sure how extended her stays there were if it was sort of just like she crashed there from time to time and you know slept together in exchange for it but they'd broken up and gotten back briefly gotten back together like he had convinced her to come over, but she was drunk, but accused him of assaulting her and ran out the door. He basically called this couple who were also much younger Native Alaskans, who he was kind of friends with because he gave them weed and asked them to come over.
21:53Basically, they were his alibis. You could sort of see that he had an explosive edge underneath him. He seemed like the sort of person who could get very angry very easily. I think he got out of town not too long afterwards. Keep a little bit of personal distance. He really does like to talk about himself. He's the sort of person who's like creates his own reality. As long as it's sort of not adversarial, like if you seem interested, he would want to tell you his story and be so proud of his alibi and you know how wrong everyone else is. If he thought you were accusing him of horrible crimes he's the sort of guy who would, I don't know in all earnestness go off into just like a loud red face rant about how he was a soldier of Christ to fight against people who do that sort of stuff to women not the sort of person who would do it himself.
22:56Ugh, he did other stuff to vulnerable women and wrote me into kind of helping him out after the fact. I think there's also like a 50 % chance that he's told himself a completely different narrative. And even if he was being completely honest with you, he might not remember doing that. Be cognizant of your own personal safety when approaching him. I don't know if he's armed at this point. He's the sort of person who would want to be armed. could get very fatalistic if he thinks that, you know, he's going to finally take the fall for it.
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25:13Toyota, let's go places. I have one more person I plan to talk to Andy Clamser the private investigator who I spoke to a few episodes ago he's been actively investigating another missing persons case in Nome, Alaska Joseph Balderas which is also very suspicious Andy is a former cop in Alaska and he knows way more about this shit than I do if he's willing to meet with me I'm going to do it. Well, I mean, the more you talk to him, the better, because the more he talks about this and whatever he says, all the contradictions, if he's the one that did it, all the contradictions are going to add up in the end.
26:00It's a gift here that he's talking this much. If you can keep him talking about it, that is great. And just when we thought we had a good plan here, things took another turn. at the Airbnb in Anchorage something just kept bothering me the only thing I can't control is whether or not he's actually on that ship and something about this whole scenario made me feel like he wasn't going to be so I messaged him again
26:35turns out he's not going to be there and he's back at home where he lives right now in a totally different place in somewhere I've never looked up in my life. Ketchikan, Alaska. The whole plan feels up in the air now. And this is exactly what I wanted to talk to Andy about. I mean, it's rare that you can sit down and talk like this with somebody who's the main suspect. So I think you should keep it going. I don't see the upside of coming clean with him. I don't see any reason to do that. If he ever finds out who I was or looks me up, he'll know that that's me. Figure out a way to just sort of continue the friendship without seeming weird or anything.
27:21Now I have a new dilemma. Now I'm meeting him on his home turf. The guns were cool and fun on Facebook, but that's when I thought he couldn't have them in person. The big concern is that if I pop up as Payne Lindsey out of nowhere, it's going to look pretty weird, given that he just met this stranger on the Internet. And all of a sudden, I'm here? And I want to talk about a disappearance? If he consented to do the interview, it's going to change completely what you get out of him because he's going to be guarded. He's going to know what you're doing. There's no way he's going to go for this. Now I'm entering a whole different realm here.
28:02This whole thing started with me just trying to figure out where he was. And through that, he became very friendly, which I still don't know what to make of. do I abort this altogether and surprise him as Payne Lindsey what do we think is going to happen when I do that nothing good I'm sure do I proceed as this Eric character my fake Facebook and try to meet him as this person breaking it down in my head the scenarios go one or two ways here if I know where he's going to be and I pop up and say hey I'm Payne Lindsey I want to talk about Florence Okbialik there's a pretty good chance he's going to say fuck off?
28:42Am I trying to get a podcast soundbite? Am I trying to fulfill some sort of personal mission? Or am I trying to figure out what the hell happened to Florence Okpeolek? Looking at all the options, my best course of action for the biggest yield would be to meet him as this fake person. That is, if he actually believes this person is real. I told him that I was in Kodiak for a while with my uncle. He used to work on the U.S. Marine Highway. I'm using his SkyMiles to get there. The other thing you could do is introduce another person. If I introduced a friend who could be with me in the moment, it'd give me a huge advantage.
29:29And who's that person in real life? I don't know. If I was going to go down this path, I want as much backup as possible. 2v1. I look like I don't belong there. Here's the reality. I have bleached hair, tattoos on my arms. I look and feel like I'm not from Ketchikan, Alaska. Having another person may help me offset that. You, you're from Alaska. It's got to be Cooper. the guy who sent me this case in the first place. He's from Alaska. He knows this territory more than anyone, and he's with me right now. Talk about a big favor. The goal would be to make contact with him, to know where he is. And you could even pitch this idea of a second person before you actually meet up with him.
30:24The second that I approach him as me, there's a chance he thinks that's weird. Because it is. We can't just assume that he's not going to think that this stranger that I met has absolutely nothing to do with this investigative journalist that just came knocking on my door the same day. Maybe it's better to spring that on him without any advance warning. You know, just show up with somebody. I'm still on the fence about this. Should I tell him that I want to meet him as this fake person? He might just not believe me. The worst thing that would happen is he stops answering. The real worst case scenario is you show up at the door and he pulls a gun on you and shoots you.
31:09That could happen. Well, that wouldn't be good. That's not the way to go.
31:18He messaged me.
31:23Probably won't be back to work till next week if you want to come out here and check it out. and come on by and you can probably crash on my floor for a week. I'm normally just debating whether or not I go to his house. I don't think you should. So where do I go then? I don't know. You try to draw him out. Better to get him in town and not out there at that fucking house. This is where all his fucking guns are. It's not like I'm buying him beers and shit. Help me out. That's where he's going to start talking. Meets him at a bar or a restaurant or diner or something. Bar probably is easiest at night.
31:58You meet it for a drink or two, and you're like, hey, I want to get into what you're doing, blah, blah, blah. You never have to mention Gnome or anything. This is the dilemma I've never been in before. But it made me stare in the mirror and think about what this shit's all about. Why am I doing this? Sure, it's a show. It's my job. You're listening to it. But what's the goal? To make some spicy clip? To pretend like we did something? to get really close and then just stop? I don't think so.
32:36I think this is a better way to do it. You're not going to get these comments that you get in a bar drinking with him. I think this is a better way to do it. Ah, DSW, Earthplace of the Humblebrag. Here, the shoes are so good, no one would ever know how little you paid if you didn't go telling everyone that is. And with never-ending options for every style, mood, and occasion, all at really great prices, we'll definitely give you something to brag about. So go ahead, stock up on fresh sneakers from your favorite brands, or try those boots you always secretly knew you could pull off. Find the shoes that get you at prices that get your budget at DSW Stores or at DSW.com.
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34:29Visit fanduel.com slash sportsfan to download the app and bet the NFL live all season long. Must be 21 plus and present in Virginia. First online real money wager only. $5 first deposit required. Bonus issued is non-withdrawable bonus bets that expire seven days after receipt. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER. The other thing of this is you need an emergency situation. I gotta get out of here. You get a phone call from us. I gotta go. Sorry. We're gonna say that you're staying in a motel, that you're not staying in. There's no way in hell I'm going to his house.
35:04I need to meet him in public. The best place to do that, without seeming weird, has to be a bar. He messaged me. There's a lot of bars in town. Let me know when your plane lands and I'll be there. It's weird that he even responded that he wanted to go get drinks and everything. Oh yeah!
35:32Oh baby!
35:36He just sent this to you? Mm-hmm. I mean that ammunition is super expensive. It's like a dollar a round. Yeah, he was telling me that too. Why in the world would he do this? Why in the world would he meet you? and why would he want to form a friendship based upon somebody reaching out on Facebook? I mean, it's bizarre to me. What possibilities are there? He's lonely. He's stupid. He doesn't have friends. But then it's like, is there a small part of him that knows that he'd be playing with fire but thinks that he's smart enough to navigate it? I don't think so. No? No. And I'd engage him on other subjects so that you sort of broaden the, like, tell him you want to buy a gun for personal protection so he's comfortable with you because you're talking about other stuff, you know?
36:28Charge and handle. Oh, yeah. He's a weird dude. Yeah. What would he be thinking? This is, like, going to be a great new friendship, you know, out of the blue? I don't know, man. What kind of person does that? Somebody that's screwed up. But it also, you know, could make him dangerous, you know. I think it makes him dangerous. Mm-hmm. Delusional, which, like, kind of puts him in a different category. He's also completely functional. I mean, he got a state job. I'm going to have a partner, my friend Cooper. 2v1. something else as just a small distraction also I'm not convinced that he just doesn't know who I actually am and in that case I definitely want one more person there but we're not gonna half-ass this thing we gotta have a whole backstory where we from what is your name why are we here we can't mess these things up this is not how this whole thing goes down where's your car what car did you get you drive it?
37:39just say it's your uncle's No, you won't have a car. No, it's your car from back home. No, you don't have a car. You should not have a car. I think your last name should be your real last name. It was like a coincidence that you happened to be here the same time I was planning. I knew that you'd been out here in the past, so I just texted you and you were here. It's my off-season since it's the winter. What's your favorite place to visit here? The Golden. Is that a real place? Yeah. Wow. Just have one name. That's why you need it. This is a bar that my friend went to. Okay, perfect. Is it still here, though?
38:19What's it called? Eagles Club. Is it still open? It's here like two months ago. Okay, I'll double check. This is already sounding very weird and unbelievable. The last thing I want to do is get hung up on some stupid detail, like if this bar is still open or not. At this point, he's beyond friendly, and he offered to pick me up from the airport. We can't do that. Now I have to have a different story about my car.
38:55And somehow, I have to bring in my other friend, too. So Cooper is Riley. I am Eric. And I told Oregon John that I want to meet him in person because I'm interested in doing the job that he does, being a seaman. And it's just a coincidence that my friend Cooper, a.k.a. Riley, is here at the same time. If you continue talking, those recordings would be like gold to law enforcement. Right when I thought I felt comfortable, the real rational part of my brain kicked in big time. Why on earth is Oregon John agreeing to meet with me as a stranger? Does he know more than I know? Does he not care? Am I just overthinking this whole damn thing?
39:46It's time to buckle down. I can't waver anymore. I want to figure out what happened to Florence Okpialik. And this is the entire goal of this podcast. And I'm willing to go to lengths that I've never been to before to try and do that. Alaska is a one-party state, which means that in recording other people, only one party has to be there in order for it to be legal.
40:17My flight's in six hours. There's no way I'm sleeping tonight.
40:27I've been on four different flights in the last 18 hours. Small rickety planes in the remote region of northern Alaska. After a while, you get used to the turbulence. The plane's engine starts to feel like white noise. When I get here, I'm going to have to face the music. For about a year now, I've been investigating an unsolved missing persons case. And it's all led me to this moment. To this place. A tiny town in remote Alaska. I'm minutes away from what is likely the most terrifying encounter of my entire life. and there's no escape plan but I've mentally prepared for this moment I know exactly why I'm here I know why the victim's family wants me to come here and I know why the police have never stepped foot here
41:32I'm about to meet the number one suspect in a murder case I know they're dangerous I know that they're armed There's no time for second thoughts now But what if I'm walking into a trap? What if this confrontation goes way south? You need to snap out of it Turn around But we both know we can't do that
42:07I didn't come this far for nothing
42:18I've landed in Ketchikan, and I'm less than 20 minutes away from meeting Oregon John at a bar.
42:30I'm going to take you to hold it until we come down. Then it's good to go? Yeah, then it's good to go. Okay, got you. You press record on your end. Yeah, that's the only thing is this one. if you don't hold it until it counts down, it's not going to connect. That's charged, Steve. Yep. All right. Happy looking. I'm good. Let's do it. We don't know what the hell we're walking into. I found a bar that was quiet enough in the back and put as many recording devices as we could, hiding in plain sight. Now we're sitting and waiting. I sat there with Cooper next to me on my right, at a table in the back of the bar that was facing the door.
43:19He messaged me. Ten minutes away. Is it a real ten minutes? Are you here already? Either way, we're on high alert now.
43:37Remember why you came here.
43:53Then he walked in. John. Hey, what's up, man? I just texted. Hey, what's up, man? This is Riley, man.
44:21To hear a full recap of this week's episode, go search for Talking to Death on your podcast app, my new weekly show, and listen to the latest episode with David Robinson that features another missing persons case. That's Talking to Death on your podcast app and the most recent episode with David Robinson, to hear a full breakdown of this week's episode.
45:10and Cooper Skinner with additional editing by Dylan Harrington. Supervising producer is Tracy Kaplan. Additional production by Victoria McKenzie, Alice Kanique Glenn and Eric Quintana. Artwork by Rob Sheridan. Original music by Makeup and Vanity Set. Mix and Mastered by Cooper Skinner. Thank you to Oren Rosenbaum and the team at UTA, Beck Media and Marketing and the Nord Group. Special thanks to all of the families and community members that spoke to the team. Additional information and resources can be found in our show notes. For more podcasts like Up and Vanished, search Tenderfoot TV on your favorite podcast app or visit us at tenderfoot.tv.
45:47Thanks for listening.
From the publisher
Payne and his producers beginning planning the best way to get closer to Oregon Jon, with internet sleuthing they eventually discover a trail to go down uncovering hints at how to get close enough to talk to him.
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