Missing Men Snuffed Out?

I  learned about this from last link just yesterday

Johnny Brian Altinger, 38, was reported missing October 10th, 2008.

On October 31st Mark Andrew Twitchell, 29, was charged with first-degree murder.

Altinger was Edmonton’s twenty-sixth homicide victim of the year.

and googled for more.

There are reams and reams of information here, here, and here

Here are my observations after reviewing what has been in the media.

Man missing, presumed dead, amateur Edmontonian film maker and crazy man arrested in macabre murder plot outlined in his movie plot for “House of Cards”
Body has not been recovered.

On October 19th (2008) a search warrant was executed at a house on 57th Street. While investigators said Altinger did not live at the location, his car was found nearby and was seized for examination.

Source Last link On The Left

A woman who lived in the area told the Edmonton Journal she thought the house was rented, and that she saw one man come and go.

“He would come maybe once a week or two for a few minutes,” she said.

Around the September long weekend “there were four guys that seemed like they were making a movie,” she said.

“There was a big movie light outside, but certainly no flyer saying they were going to be doing a movie outside.

Meanwhile, mystery continued to surround the presence of Edmonton Police Service officers at a house in the city of St. Albert. The community north of Edmonton usually falls under RCMP jurisdiction.

Edmonton police vehicles showed up at the house at 30 Dayton Crescent at about the same time they began investigating the residence at 5712 40 Avenue in Edmonton where Altinger was last seen.

Neighbours said several renters, a young couple with a baby and young child, had moved in about August and kept to themselves. ( Mark Andrew Twitchell, 29, is the father of two and a husband)

A forensic team was observed removing items from the home after a four-day Edmonton police presence.

Police believe they know how Altinger died.

“It was actually filmed and there are actors; we interviewed the actors. We’ve interviewed everybody and that film actually did take place.”

While Altinger’s body has yet to be recovered enough forensic evidence has been found to support a charge of first-degree murder.

“This is very rare. There is a lot of evidence to prove he is deceased,” Anstey said.

Officers also (located) another male victim, who may have been lured by a similar online ad prior to Johnny Altinger and managed to escape.

Arrest made

On October 31st, 2008 Edmonton police arrested 29-year-old  (Independent Film maker)  Mark Andrew Twitchell without incident at a home near 131st Avenue and 87th Street or 90th Street and 130th Avenue (police reports varied).

On November 3rd, 2008 police announced they were checking missing persons records in an effort to determine if others had fallen prey to the “snuff film” scenario posed by investigators.

The Plot

Source Canada.com

“It was about a killer luring a male off the internet, off a dating site, on the pretense that he’d meet a lovely, sexy girl,” Anstey said.

In the movie script, the victim is forced to reveal personal information including bank accounts, social networking sites (like face book) and email accounts.  The actual murder takes place in the garage and evidence is destroyed by the meticulous dismemberment of the victim.

Friends of Altinger confirmed he had told them about meeting a girl online and his plans to meet her.

The Email

Last Link on The left

Select friends of the missing man report receiving an email from him.  They doubted it’s veracity because Johnny Atlinger called himself “John” with friends, Johnny with strangers, and John had signed the suspicious email with a sunny and light hearted “Johnny”.

I’m put in mind of the murder of David Wong also in Edmonton.  This happened in February 2007 at 8820 Jasper Avenue NW, Edmonton AB. Four men have plead guilty to being an accessory to murder after the fact.  They were caught literally red handed cutting the man to pieces in the bath tub. No word on who killed the man. The motive remains a mystery.

Now we have another missing man who seems to fit the descriptions of the missing men I’ve been blogging about over here… Young, fit, athletic young men generally not previously known to police.

Dylan Koshman went missing after storming out during an argument with his room mates/cousins.

Edmonton police have asked for the public’s help in locating a missing 21-year-old man last seen shortly after 2 a.m. on October 11th, 2008 leaving a home at 10404 33 Avenue.

Dylan Koshman, ‘the tip of the iceburg’

Literally hundreds of missing person files are tucked away at Edmonton Police Service headquarters, with about 15 high-profile ones posted on the service’s website.

On the Alberta Missing Persons site, 134 missing people are listed, with some disappearances decades old.

Johnny Altinger, 38, also who hasn’t been heard from since Oct. 10. He was last seen in an area near 40 Avenue and 57 Street, where residents reported seeing a heavy police presence last week.

Hazel’s Maps

Please note, the proximity of these two last known sightings to each other last seen only one day apart. Also consider where David Wong was lured and the manner in which he was dismembered.  We now have a good idea of what happened to Johnny Atlinger, if not ‘where’ he is.  There are horrific similarities between Wong’s death and Atlinger’s possible demise.  Except! In Wong’s case they have four men charged with accessory to murder after the fact, and no murderer or motive.  In Atlinger’s case, they have one man charged with murder after interviewing four (presumably innocent) actors, a motive but no body.

To the men and boys of Edmonton,

Remember cooler heads prevail!  Don’t count on your athleticism to deter perps, take precautions, talk to women ask about their safety measures.  Do not meet anyone you’ve met online without a back up person to be there with you, but most importantly keep your wits about you!  This means drink (and whatever) in moderation, get your adrenalin rush by bungee jumping rather than go looking for love in all the wrong places. There are seriously disturbed people out there – gunning for YOU.

Be Ware!