EPISODE 525: Paul Elliott Part 2 - Through the Window

In August of 2007, 50-year-old Paul Elliott disappeared from Alliance, Ohio. According to Paul’s brother-in-law, Phil, Paul left home on his bicycle.

At first, Paul’s family believed he had likely gone to the rural trailer property where he sometimes stayed when he needed space. But when Paul’s son, Bryan, checked the property, the trailer was locked, and there was no sign of Paul or his bicycle.

Bryan checked the places Paul was known to go, contacted friends and family, repeatedly returned to the trailer property, and hung missing person flyers throughout town. But no one could confirm seeing Paul after the day Phil said he rode away.

Meanwhile, a strange rumor began to spread that Paul had gone to Alaska. No one seemed to know where the story originated, but somehow, it took hold. Some family members were told Paul was in Alaska, not that he was missing. For years, that rumor gave some people hope, while others questioned whether it was true at all.

As time passed, Bryan became increasingly skeptical. Paul had left behind his phone, wallet, identification, Social Security card, and even the backpack he usually carried when riding his bike, hardly the belongings of someone preparing to start over thousands of miles away.

Then, in 2013, nearly six years after Paul disappeared, Bryan made a discovery that changed everything. Inside Paul’s locked trailer, Bryan found Paul’s bicycle hidden in the back room. That discovery raised an entirely new set of questions. Had Paul hidden it himself? Had someone else put it there? And if the bike had been there all along, what did that mean?

This week, in Part 2, we follow what happened after that discovery: the renewed investigation, the search of the trailer property, cadaver dog alerts, the strange and shifting Alaska stories, and troubling details buried in the police file that Bryan had never been told.

If you have any information about the disappearance of Paul Elliott, please contact the Alliance Police Department at 330-821-9140.

EPISODE 524: Paul Elliott Part 1 - Somewhere Between Alliance and Alaska

On a summer day in 2007, 50-year-old Paul Elliott left the duplex he shared with family in Alliance and rode away on his bicycle. 

According to his brother-in-law, Paul left after learning that police had been called about tools stolen from the property. There's no indication that Paul had taken the tools. In fact, his brother-in-law reportedly believed someone else was responsible. But those close to Paul say he was deeply uncomfortable around law enforcement because of something that had happened years earlier, so when he heard police were coming, he left before they arrived.

Paul had a remote trailer outside of town where he sometimes went to be alone and clear his head. Everyone assumed he headed there and would be back within a few days, but Paul never came home.

As time passed, a strange story began to spread. People said Paul had gone to Alaska. No one seemed to know exactly where that story came from, but somehow it took hold. At first, it gave his loved ones hope that Paul had simply walked away to start over somewhere else. However, the explanation that Paul went to Alaska didn't seem to hold up under closer scrutiny. Paul had left behind his wallet, phone, identification, and everything he would've needed to build a new life. He was also excited for his son’s upcoming wedding, a day those closest to him insist he never would have missed.

Then, several years later, Paul’s son made a discovery that changed everything. Hidden inside a locked building he found Paul’s bicycle, the very bicycle he was said to have ridden away the day he vanished. It had been tucked out of sight, almost as though someone wanted to make sure it wouldn't be found.

More than 18 years later, Paul Elliott is still missing, and the questions surrounding what happened to him remain unanswered. 

If you have any information about the disappearance of Paul Elliott, please contact the Alliance Police Department at 330-821-9140.

EPISODE 523: Andrew Dixon Part 4 - What Followed Him

Over the past three weeks, we’ve followed Andrew Dixon’s story from the beginning, from the life he was trying to build, to the challenges he faced, to the fear and confusion that seemed to grow in the weeks leading up to his disappearance.

We traced Andrew’s final known movements, the early investigation, and the discovery of the car abandoned along a remote stretch of highway roughly 45 miles north of Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. But beyond that point, Andrew’s trail goes cold. There is no way to know for certain whether Andrew was behind the wheel when that vehicle was abandoned, or whether he ever made it to that stretch of highway at all.

As the investigation continued, new information complicated the picture. Early assumptions began to shift, and those closest to Andrew were left trying to make sense of details that often did not fully add up.

In this fourth and final installment of Andrew’s story, we take a closer look at the search efforts, the theories surrounding what may have happened to Andrew, and the questions that still remain unanswered.

In Andrew’s case, every possibility comes with contradictions. Every theory leaves something unexplained. Until Andrew is found, the people who love him are left searching for answers in the spaces between what is known and what is missing.

If you have any information regarding the disappearance of Andrew Dixon, please contact the Truth or Consequences Police Department at 575-894-7111.