On May 14, 2008, a 19-year-old Minnesota man, Brandon Swanson, left the party organized to celebrate the end of the spring semester on his campus.
On his way home, he drove his car into a ditch. Swanson not sure of his exact location called his parents to come pick him up.
Swanson's parents kept him on the phone as they drove to the location he had given them. However, 47 minutes into the call, Swanson's line went dea-d after he shouted 'Oh sh"t.'
His car was found in a ditch in a location far away from where he told his parents he was, but there was no trace of Swanson, not even any of his belongings. It's been more than 15 years, and Brandon Swanson is still missing.
The Perplexing Disappearance of Brandon Swanson— What we Know
Brandon Swanson, who was born on January 30, 1989, experienced a car accident in the early morning of May 14, 2008, while driving back home from celebrating the end of the spring semester with his classmates from Minnesota West Community and Technical College's Canby campus.
Although he was unharmed, he called his parents using his cellphone, informing them that he believed he was near Lynd. However, his parents were unable to locate him when they went out to pick him up. During the 47-minute phone call with his parents, he suddenly exclaimed "Oh, shit!" and then went silent.
The Beginning
Swanson was born and raised in Marshall, a city located in the southwestern part of Lyon County, Minnesota.
He completed his high school education at Marshall High School in 2007 and subsequently enrolled in Minnesota West Community and Technical College's Canby campus to study wind turbines, which he pursued for a year.
On May 13, 2008, the academic year at Minnesota West came to an end. Swanson decided to celebrate with his friends in Canby and remained there for the evening. Although he was seen consuming some alcoholic drinks at two different gatherings, his friends noted that he did not appear to be visibly intoxicated.
Brandon Exclaimed "Oh Shit" and Then Disappeared
Swanson departed from Canby and began driving back home, which was a 30-mile journey, before midnight. However, he encountered an accident and drove his Chevrolet Lumina off the road and into a ditch, rendering the car immovable.
Despite escaping unharmed, he contacted his parents via cellphone around 2 a.m. and informed them of the incident. He requested that they come to pick him up from his location, which he believed was near Lynd, a small town approximately 7 miles southwest of Marshall.
His parents, Annette and Brian Swanson, responded to his call and drove to his supposed location. They kept him on the phone, despite occasional hangups and drops, while he stayed with his car and attempted to signal them by flashing his lights.
However, neither party was successful in locating each other. Eventually, Swanson decided to leave the car and walk towards the lights he could see, which led him to believe he was near Lynd. He instructed his father to wait for him at a local bar's parking lot.
Around 2:30 a.m., roughly 47 minutes into the call, Swanson suddenly exclaimed "Oh, shit!" and the call went silent. His parents attempted to reconnect with him multiple times, but there was no response. Since then, Swanson has not been seen or heard from.
Failed Investigation Into Swanson's Disappearance
Swanson's parents reported him missing to the Lynd police at 6:30 a.m. on the day he disappeared. However, they were initially told that it was not uncommon for young men his age to stay out all night after the last day of college classes. An officer even remarked that it was Swanson's "right to be missing," according to Annette Swanson.
The Lynd police eventually initiated a search later that morning but were unable to locate Swanson in the town or its surrounding areas. They requested assistance from the Lyon County sheriff's office, to help with the search.
To narrow down the search area, the sheriff's office obtained Swanson's cellphone records, which revealed that he was calling from the vicinity of Taunton, a town located approximately 25 miles northwest of Marshall along State Highway 68, the main route to Canby.
While searching the Taunton area, authorities discovered Swanson's abandoned car in a ditch off a gravel road along the Lincoln County line, one mile north of Highway 68. However, there was no evidence of foul play.
Swanson's cellphone call had been routed through a tower located near the intersection of County Routes 3 and 10, close to Minneota, a city in Lyon County, Minnesota, along Highway 68. Authorities determined that the call had come from within a 5-mile (8.0 km) radius of the tower and focused their search efforts in that area. Despite the search efforts, there was no trace of Swanson.
During the phone conversation with his father, Swanson mentioned hearing nearby water and passing fences. Authorities considered the possibility that he may have drowned and deployed boats to search the river and areas around the water.
During the search, no personal belongings or clothing belonging to Swanson were discovered on the route to the river or along the two-mile stretch of the river in the area, which typically takes around six hours to walk. Despite the use of search and cadaver dogs over three weeks, no evidence or trace of Swanson was found.
There have been several theories, yet no one could explain what happened to Brandon Swanson. How Swanson disappeared without a trace has perplexed the minds of many.
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