1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:13,780 The views and opinions expressed in Cold and Missing are exclusively those of the hosts. 2 00:00:13,780 --> 00:00:18,400 All parties mentioned are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. 3 00:00:18,400 --> 00:00:22,160 Cold and Missing also contains adult themes and languages. 4 00:00:22,160 --> 00:00:24,560 Listener discretion is advised. 5 00:00:24,560 --> 00:00:27,280 I'm your host, Ali McLaughlin-Sulkowski. 6 00:00:27,280 --> 00:00:29,680 And I'm your co-host, Eli Sulkowski. 7 00:00:29,680 --> 00:00:34,480 And this is Cold and Missing, where we cover cold cases and missing person cases. 8 00:00:34,480 --> 00:00:37,200 Hello everyone and welcome back to Cold and Missing. 9 00:00:37,200 --> 00:00:41,000 I'm your host, Ali, and it will just be me coming to you this week. 10 00:00:41,000 --> 00:00:46,480 Eli is feeling under the weather and a little sick at the moment, so he is taking the time 11 00:00:46,480 --> 00:00:52,160 to rest, which I always encourage for him because I love him and he's my husband. 12 00:00:52,160 --> 00:00:57,680 So he's resting, but I'm here recording the podcast. 13 00:00:57,680 --> 00:01:00,280 Of course, wanted to bring you a new episode. 14 00:01:00,280 --> 00:01:03,580 We are on a missing person case this week. 15 00:01:03,580 --> 00:01:09,180 And this case is a little bit different than cases we usually cover. 16 00:01:09,180 --> 00:01:13,760 And I think that will kind of be made clear, but we'll talk about it more at the end as 17 00:01:13,760 --> 00:01:14,980 we usually do. 18 00:01:14,980 --> 00:01:20,760 But yeah, we are on episode 118. 19 00:01:20,760 --> 00:01:27,480 Today we are talking about the missing person case of James Anthony Amp Reynolds. 20 00:01:27,480 --> 00:01:33,200 And this takes place in May of 1999 in Opp, Alabama. 21 00:01:33,200 --> 00:01:36,960 But first, a little bit about James Anthony Reynolds. 22 00:01:36,960 --> 00:01:40,040 James is 28 years old in 1999. 23 00:01:40,040 --> 00:01:47,900 He is known by family and friends as Amp, a nickname given to him as a child by an uncle. 24 00:01:47,900 --> 00:01:51,960 At this point in 1999, he lives in Webb, Alabama. 25 00:01:51,960 --> 00:01:54,120 He is very close with his family. 26 00:01:54,120 --> 00:01:59,520 He lives with them and his parents say that he is in constant communication with them. 27 00:01:59,520 --> 00:02:02,040 And now a timeline of events. 28 00:02:02,040 --> 00:02:06,560 Friday, May 7, 1999. 29 00:02:06,560 --> 00:02:12,760 It's unclear if there were plans ahead of time to hang out or if plans developed naturally. 30 00:02:12,760 --> 00:02:14,960 But here is what we know. 31 00:02:14,960 --> 00:02:18,440 Six friends ultimately get together for a night out. 32 00:02:18,440 --> 00:02:22,040 Tamara Monique Ward, who is 25 years old. 33 00:02:22,040 --> 00:02:24,440 Angela Roberts Young, who is 26. 34 00:02:24,440 --> 00:02:28,240 Eula Josette Lee, who is 27. 35 00:02:28,240 --> 00:02:30,840 Lamar Stackhouse, who is 26 years old. 36 00:02:30,840 --> 00:02:34,800 And then Valerie Jones McCoy, who is 26. 37 00:02:34,800 --> 00:02:37,480 And then of course, Amp Reynolds. 38 00:02:37,480 --> 00:02:42,680 The night starts out with Tamara, Angela, Eula , and Valerie getting together at Eula’s 39 00:02:42,680 --> 00:02:44,680 apartment that evening. 40 00:02:44,680 --> 00:02:49,680 The four friends often hung out together and tonight seemed no different. 41 00:02:49,680 --> 00:02:54,400 All of the girls were young mothers, so this was a chance for them to get out and have 42 00:02:54,400 --> 00:02:56,080 a girls night. 43 00:02:56,080 --> 00:03:00,760 At around 11pm, the girls decided to head over to Lamar's house. 44 00:03:00,760 --> 00:03:05,600 It appears that part of the fun that night was Lamar showing off his brand new souped 45 00:03:05,600 --> 00:03:11,080 up 1986 Chevrolet Caprice with an upgraded stereo system. 46 00:03:11,080 --> 00:03:15,680 The car was burgundy in color and had gold rims. 47 00:03:15,680 --> 00:03:19,160 Lamar had just gotten the car a few days before. 48 00:03:19,160 --> 00:03:22,400 Amp eventually joins them shortly after the girls arrive. 49 00:03:22,400 --> 00:03:27,680 While the night appears to be gearing up, Eula’s mother Josephine Farley says that 50 00:03:27,680 --> 00:03:33,020 Eula calls her boyfriend around 11pm to say that she would be home soon. 51 00:03:33,020 --> 00:03:38,920 But the night continues and at around 11.45, Tamara calls her babysitter to say that she 52 00:03:38,920 --> 00:03:41,200 would pick her baby up in the morning. 53 00:03:41,200 --> 00:03:44,480 The babysitter said that it was no problem at all. 54 00:03:44,480 --> 00:03:51,000 Eventually, all six hop in Lamar's new car and head to the hideaway club in nearby 55 00:03:51,000 --> 00:03:53,040 Opp, Alabama. 56 00:03:53,040 --> 00:03:58,760 The group arrives at the club just shortly after 1am on what is now Saturday, May 8. 57 00:03:58,760 --> 00:04:02,080 By all accounts, the group was having a great time at the club. 58 00:04:02,080 --> 00:04:07,400 Witnesses reported that they were drinking, laughing, and dancing the night away. 59 00:04:07,400 --> 00:04:10,680 The hideaway club closes around 3am. 60 00:04:10,680 --> 00:04:15,380 The security guard at the club, who goes by the name Mr., starts moving people towards 61 00:04:15,380 --> 00:04:19,160 the door as 3am creeps closer. 62 00:04:19,160 --> 00:04:24,860 Once the club is officially closed, in the parking lot, Mr. notices Lamar, who was very 63 00:04:24,860 --> 00:04:29,240 intoxicated and rubbing the engine of his brand new car. 64 00:04:29,240 --> 00:04:35,120 Mr. says, quote, I said, you better let someone else drive that car, end quote. 65 00:04:35,120 --> 00:04:41,280 It's believed that Tamara took over driving, but this has never been fully confirmed. 66 00:04:41,280 --> 00:04:44,700 Standing just outside of the car were two guys from the club that had been chatting 67 00:04:44,700 --> 00:04:46,640 up two of the girls. 68 00:04:46,640 --> 00:04:51,120 They saw the group pile into the car and all leave the parking lot. 69 00:04:51,120 --> 00:04:56,200 Several witnesses reported that the group left around 3.15am and headed out on Highway 70 00:04:56,200 --> 00:04:59,000 331. 71 00:04:59,000 --> 00:05:02,840 It was presumed that the group was headed back to Enterprise, Alabama, where they had 72 00:05:02,840 --> 00:05:08,400 all met, but no one knows for sure where the group was ultimately headed. 73 00:05:08,400 --> 00:05:13,480 The last time any of the six are seen is as they were pulling out of the parking lot of 74 00:05:13,480 --> 00:05:17,200 the club at around 3.15am. 75 00:05:17,200 --> 00:05:21,560 The group's disappearance is noticed immediately by loved ones. 76 00:05:21,560 --> 00:05:27,120 When folks fail to return home, especially to their children, which was out of the ordinary 77 00:05:27,120 --> 00:05:32,720 and out of character for all of them to just not show up, families start to raise the alarm. 78 00:05:32,720 --> 00:05:37,560 Amp specifically was very communicative with his family. 79 00:05:37,560 --> 00:05:41,620 Even though he was nearly 30 years old, he always told his parents when he was going 80 00:05:41,620 --> 00:05:45,040 to be out of the house all night long so that way they wouldn't worry. 81 00:05:45,040 --> 00:05:49,320 The fact that he hadn't told them was strange. 82 00:05:49,320 --> 00:05:54,400 Three days after they all vanished, by May 11th, all six of them had been reported missing 83 00:05:54,400 --> 00:05:56,520 to police. 84 00:05:56,520 --> 00:06:01,720 Police get to work trying to trace the adults, and because they all lived in different parts 85 00:06:01,720 --> 00:06:06,120 of Alabama, several different police agencies are ultimately involved in the search for 86 00:06:06,120 --> 00:06:07,480 them. 87 00:06:07,480 --> 00:06:12,520 Lamar did have a cell phone at this time, which was kind of rare for 1999, but he hadn't 88 00:06:12,520 --> 00:06:16,240 used it since the day before they all went missing. 89 00:06:16,240 --> 00:06:19,480 Police start looking every route that the friends could have taken when they left the 90 00:06:19,480 --> 00:06:22,680 club to see if they had gone off the road at any point. 91 00:06:22,680 --> 00:06:24,640 But they can't find anything. 92 00:06:24,640 --> 00:06:27,960 No evidence of them or the burgundy car. 93 00:06:27,960 --> 00:06:33,040 The police ask the public for help, quote, we have flown or driven every route possible 94 00:06:33,040 --> 00:06:34,980 in South Alabama. 95 00:06:34,980 --> 00:06:39,960 All we know is they left the club shortly after 3am and then disappeared. 96 00:06:39,960 --> 00:06:45,920 They have not been heard from since and there are no new leads, end quote. 97 00:06:45,920 --> 00:06:50,720 All of the families of the vanish stress that this is out of character for all of them. 98 00:06:50,720 --> 00:06:54,880 All of them had responsibilities and they have never abandoned them before. 99 00:06:54,880 --> 00:06:58,840 And there is no reason for any of them to start now. 100 00:06:58,840 --> 00:07:04,920 On Thursday, June 3, the group has been missing for almost a month at 27 days and the police 101 00:07:04,920 --> 00:07:09,320 launched a search of what was most likely the route that the group would have taken 102 00:07:09,320 --> 00:07:11,440 that night. 103 00:07:11,440 --> 00:07:14,360 Police bring cadaver dogs in to search. 104 00:07:14,360 --> 00:07:19,040 They also bring in a team of divers to search the many rivers and creeks that cross Highway 105 00:07:19,040 --> 00:07:27,200 134 from Opp to Enterprise, which is where the group was believed to be headed. 106 00:07:27,200 --> 00:07:31,200 Searchers let the cadaver dogs go through first and then searchers follow behind to 107 00:07:31,200 --> 00:07:38,360 double check areas that the dogs were interested in and the divers begin to search waterways. 108 00:07:38,360 --> 00:07:44,160 Investigators strongly believe that a car accident is most likely the cause of the disappearance, 109 00:07:44,160 --> 00:07:47,680 quote, the most plausible theory would be an accident. 110 00:07:47,680 --> 00:07:51,680 We've got a lot of water, a lot of greenery, some embankments. 111 00:07:51,680 --> 00:07:57,120 It could have happened in such a unique way that we haven't found them yet, end quote. 112 00:07:57,120 --> 00:08:02,220 Throughout the month of June, police continue to search the roads for any sign of the group. 113 00:08:02,220 --> 00:08:08,000 Police say that every waterway has been searched that intersects with Highway 134 from Opp to 114 00:08:08,000 --> 00:08:10,320 Enterprise. 115 00:08:10,320 --> 00:08:15,880 As July rolls around and it approaches two months that the six have been missing, the 116 00:08:15,880 --> 00:08:20,200 employees of the missing begin to organize their own searches and try to gather information 117 00:08:20,200 --> 00:08:21,200 on their own. 118 00:08:21,200 --> 00:08:27,260 They start by going door to door near the club and asking folks if they had seen anything. 119 00:08:27,260 --> 00:08:32,000 At the hideaway club, flyers hang all around the outside. 120 00:08:32,000 --> 00:08:38,480 The club owner, Edward Anderson, says, quote, we also have flyers up on the inside thinking 121 00:08:38,480 --> 00:08:42,400 that might help somebody who saw them to call the police department. 122 00:08:42,400 --> 00:08:44,960 I would like to know what happened to them myself. 123 00:08:44,960 --> 00:08:47,880 It's very strange, end quote. 124 00:08:47,880 --> 00:08:54,040 Amps father, who has the same name, so James Reynolds Senior, is hopeful that more resources 125 00:08:54,040 --> 00:08:56,800 will be brought in to search for them. 126 00:08:56,800 --> 00:09:00,380 He says, quote, because at this point we are at a dead end. 127 00:09:00,380 --> 00:09:03,120 We're hoping this will turn up some sort of lead. 128 00:09:03,120 --> 00:09:06,240 If not, I'm hoping the state will send their helicopter down. 129 00:09:06,240 --> 00:09:10,280 We already have enough volunteers from the Coffey County Sheriff's Department to go 130 00:09:10,280 --> 00:09:15,760 them to go in extended area search because we don't believe the car ever made it back 131 00:09:15,760 --> 00:09:17,440 to Enterprise. 132 00:09:17,440 --> 00:09:22,400 Whatever happened, happened within a 20 mile radius, end quote. 133 00:09:22,400 --> 00:09:27,080 The families are baffled that there has been no sign and no one has come forward with information 134 00:09:27,080 --> 00:09:29,320 saying that they saw them. 135 00:09:29,320 --> 00:09:33,980 Angela's mother says, quote, we're talking about six people here. 136 00:09:33,980 --> 00:09:38,600 Even if they went somewhere, six people are not going to agree to something like that. 137 00:09:38,600 --> 00:09:41,480 If they had an accident, we should have found the car. 138 00:09:41,480 --> 00:09:45,720 And if someone is holding them for whatever reason, we want them released. 139 00:09:45,720 --> 00:09:48,200 They all came down here just to party. 140 00:09:48,200 --> 00:09:51,320 After that, it's a mystery, end quote. 141 00:09:51,320 --> 00:09:57,140 Despite the family's plea for help, still no leads come forward. 142 00:09:57,140 --> 00:10:02,600 In August of 1999, so it's been about three months now that the six have been missing, 143 00:10:02,600 --> 00:10:08,520 while there is no evidence of foul play, there is also no evidence ruling out foul 144 00:10:08,520 --> 00:10:11,240 play, according to police. 145 00:10:11,240 --> 00:10:17,200 The governor of Alabama establishes a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest 146 00:10:17,200 --> 00:10:22,600 in the event a crime has taken place in the disappearance of these six people. 147 00:10:22,600 --> 00:10:27,560 This reward does generate a lot of interest in the case and publicity, and that does get 148 00:10:27,560 --> 00:10:29,120 a new tip. 149 00:10:29,120 --> 00:10:33,900 A truck driver believes that he saw the group the night they went missing, about three hours 150 00:10:33,900 --> 00:10:35,320 after they left the club. 151 00:10:35,320 --> 00:10:38,200 So that would have been around 6 15 a.m. 152 00:10:38,200 --> 00:10:43,340 The truck driver told police he may have seen the car head west towards Andalusia. 153 00:10:43,340 --> 00:10:47,760 Police begin to focus on the roads and waterways in this direction, hoping for a sign of the 154 00:10:47,760 --> 00:10:48,760 group. 155 00:10:48,760 --> 00:10:53,680 By the end of August, police make the call to bring divers back out to search. 156 00:10:53,680 --> 00:10:58,560 The summer of 1999 had been very dry, and the water levels were a lot lower than they 157 00:10:58,560 --> 00:11:03,240 were during May and June when police first started to search. 158 00:11:03,240 --> 00:11:07,680 Police focus on different waterways based off of the tip from the trucker. 159 00:11:07,680 --> 00:11:11,440 Police do end up finding two cars in their search, but neither one of them is the one 160 00:11:11,440 --> 00:11:14,060 that they're looking for. 161 00:11:14,060 --> 00:11:20,960 In September of 1999, the governor increases the reward for information from $10,000 to 162 00:11:20,960 --> 00:11:21,960 $20,000. 163 00:11:21,960 --> 00:11:27,880 It's also around this time that the NAACP also publicly asks for the FBI to get involved 164 00:11:27,880 --> 00:11:29,320 in the case. 165 00:11:29,320 --> 00:11:34,160 The president says, quote, An investigation by the FBI is certainly warranted because 166 00:11:34,160 --> 00:11:40,400 of the circumstances surrounding this case and Alabama's history of civil rights violations, 167 00:11:40,400 --> 00:11:42,040 end quote. 168 00:11:42,040 --> 00:11:47,660 The pressure begins to build on police to provide answers in this case. 169 00:11:47,660 --> 00:11:53,360 And the decision is made to research the waterways that they searched in the beginning, trying 170 00:11:53,360 --> 00:11:57,160 to use the lower water levels to their advantage. 171 00:11:57,160 --> 00:12:02,380 With this new plan in mind, on Wednesday, September 29th, police get to work searching 172 00:12:02,380 --> 00:12:07,840 the P River that runs under Ballard's Bridge, a bridge that the group would have crossed 173 00:12:07,840 --> 00:12:11,280 if they took the most direct path home. 174 00:12:11,280 --> 00:12:16,000 Ballard's Bridge in 1999 is a dangerous spot to drive. 175 00:12:16,000 --> 00:12:21,560 The bridge is narrow, only 22 feet wide, so there is little to no room for error when 176 00:12:21,560 --> 00:12:24,840 you pass a car going the opposite way. 177 00:12:24,840 --> 00:12:30,040 For reference, the code in 1999 said that any new bridge built would have had to have 178 00:12:30,040 --> 00:12:34,840 been at least 40 feet, so almost double the size of the bridge. 179 00:12:34,840 --> 00:12:37,140 Police begin to search the P River. 180 00:12:37,140 --> 00:12:40,720 The water is only nine feet deep at this point. 181 00:12:40,720 --> 00:12:45,000 Earlier in the summer, it would have been around 17 to 18 feet. 182 00:12:45,000 --> 00:12:49,640 Within 20 minutes of searching, police find the car. 183 00:12:49,640 --> 00:12:57,240 The car was found at the bottom of the river, upside down, about 50 feet from the bridge. 184 00:12:57,240 --> 00:13:03,080 It takes investigators about three hours for them to pull the car from the river. 185 00:13:03,080 --> 00:13:08,600 When they do, they find the hood of the car was smashed and the roof was dented and caved 186 00:13:08,600 --> 00:13:11,000 in toward the front seat. 187 00:13:11,000 --> 00:13:15,280 The windshield and two windows were missing from the car. 188 00:13:15,280 --> 00:13:20,500 It's still very early in the investigation on how the car ended up in the river. 189 00:13:20,500 --> 00:13:26,000 Police do not know if the car ran off the highway before plunging into the river or 190 00:13:26,000 --> 00:13:30,840 if the car was driven down a dirt road that leads to the riverbank under the bridge and 191 00:13:30,840 --> 00:13:33,320 then driven into the water. 192 00:13:33,320 --> 00:13:38,160 Authorities do know for certain that the car did not run off the bridge. 193 00:13:38,160 --> 00:13:43,400 There had been no damage to the guardrails on either side of the bridge. 194 00:13:43,400 --> 00:13:46,960 Family had started to gather at the bridge to watch investigators as news spread that 195 00:13:46,960 --> 00:13:49,100 a car had been found. 196 00:13:49,100 --> 00:13:53,640 As those watching realize it's the missing car, emotions are high. 197 00:13:53,640 --> 00:13:58,400 It's the answer that people had expected, but that nobody wanted. 198 00:13:58,400 --> 00:14:03,640 Lamar's father is heartbroken to see his son's car pulled from the river. 199 00:14:03,640 --> 00:14:07,980 He had stood near the banks of the river just a few days after the six went missing and 200 00:14:07,980 --> 00:14:11,320 pointed out tire tracks to the police. 201 00:14:11,320 --> 00:14:13,840 Police told him the area had already been searched. 202 00:14:13,840 --> 00:14:18,440 He says, quote, I stood right there over that spot and I told police that the tire tracks 203 00:14:18,440 --> 00:14:21,000 were like four feet from the water. 204 00:14:21,000 --> 00:14:25,960 Four months later, they went to the same spot where the tracks were and found them, end 205 00:14:25,960 --> 00:14:27,360 quote. 206 00:14:27,360 --> 00:14:32,600 When the car is fully pulled from the water, police do see bodies in the car, most of them 207 00:14:32,600 --> 00:14:34,400 in the back seat. 208 00:14:34,400 --> 00:14:39,440 But due to the level of decomposition, they don't attempt to pull any bodies out at the 209 00:14:39,440 --> 00:14:40,440 scene. 210 00:14:40,440 --> 00:14:45,200 They seal the car up and send it to the Alabama Department of Forensic Science to begin the 211 00:14:45,200 --> 00:14:50,720 process of IDing the victims and completing the autopsies. 212 00:14:50,720 --> 00:14:54,340 Police do believe that all six are in the car and it's reported at that time that they 213 00:14:54,340 --> 00:14:57,160 all had been found. 214 00:14:57,160 --> 00:15:01,120 Divers will return to the river several more times to search where the vehicle had been 215 00:15:01,120 --> 00:15:03,600 found for additional evidence. 216 00:15:03,600 --> 00:15:09,020 They do find additional skeletal remains that are brought up and taken to the lab. 217 00:15:09,020 --> 00:15:14,760 In the days following, crowds gather as people watch the divers work and offer theories to 218 00:15:14,760 --> 00:15:17,280 how the car could end up there. 219 00:15:17,280 --> 00:15:22,040 A friend of the group told a reporter, quote, the whole town is saying these folks were 220 00:15:22,040 --> 00:15:25,720 dead before they got there, end quote. 221 00:15:25,720 --> 00:15:30,480 By October 1st, so it's approaching five months since they had all vanished, and police 222 00:15:30,480 --> 00:15:35,600 are working with the theory that the driver of the car had failed to negotiate a turn 223 00:15:35,600 --> 00:15:41,040 right before the bridge and ran off of the highway down a steep embankment and into the 224 00:15:41,040 --> 00:15:44,980 river, killing everyone inside. 225 00:15:44,980 --> 00:15:51,200 Inside the vehicle, police find a watch that had been stopped at 3 39, approximately 24 226 00:15:51,200 --> 00:15:54,480 minutes after they were last seen leaving the club. 227 00:15:54,480 --> 00:16:00,120 Sergeant Walter Bowers says, quote, considering the time the victims were last seen in opp, 228 00:16:00,120 --> 00:16:04,240 this would have given them approximately 20 minutes to drive from the club to where the 229 00:16:04,240 --> 00:16:05,980 crash happened. 230 00:16:05,980 --> 00:16:10,920 At this point, everything we have found is consistent with that of a traffic crash. 231 00:16:10,920 --> 00:16:14,080 We still have some questions that are unanswered. 232 00:16:14,080 --> 00:16:18,640 At this point, we are not sure exactly where the car went off the roadway, but we are believing 233 00:16:18,640 --> 00:16:23,280 this is indeed a traffic accident based on what we have gathered at the scene. 234 00:16:23,280 --> 00:16:27,520 The investigation has not been completed and we will piece together what we have to get 235 00:16:27,520 --> 00:16:32,720 a complete picture of what happened from the time they left the club up until the crash 236 00:16:32,720 --> 00:16:35,360 itself, end quote. 237 00:16:35,360 --> 00:16:40,040 Families of Valerie and Eula's loved ones questioned the crash theory. 238 00:16:40,040 --> 00:16:44,280 They started looking for the missing group at 4 30 a.m. when they failed to return from 239 00:16:44,280 --> 00:16:45,280 the club. 240 00:16:45,280 --> 00:16:50,320 Valerie's husband says, quote, when Valerie wasn't home at the time, I knew something 241 00:16:50,320 --> 00:16:51,320 was wrong. 242 00:16:51,320 --> 00:16:54,160 We were at that bridge where they found them. 243 00:16:54,160 --> 00:16:58,560 We checked the guardrails, looked for tire tracks and checked to see if there were any 244 00:16:58,560 --> 00:17:01,240 broken tree limbs leading to the river. 245 00:17:01,240 --> 00:17:04,640 We didn't see anything, end quote. 246 00:17:04,640 --> 00:17:11,080 On the evening of Monday, October 25th, almost a month after the car was found, the autopsy 247 00:17:11,080 --> 00:17:14,680 and ID process had finished. 248 00:17:14,680 --> 00:17:18,000 Investigators have never officially released a cause of death. 249 00:17:18,000 --> 00:17:25,840 They do, however, say that there were no gunshot wounds, no stab wounds and no broken bones 250 00:17:25,840 --> 00:17:28,080 on the victims. 251 00:17:28,080 --> 00:17:32,280 Investigators call the families in one by one to confirm that they were able to ID their 252 00:17:32,280 --> 00:17:36,160 loved ones and release the bodies to them for burial. 253 00:17:36,160 --> 00:17:39,560 The last one called in was Amps father. 254 00:17:39,560 --> 00:17:44,440 It's here that they reveal that there was no sign that Amp was in the car. 255 00:17:44,440 --> 00:17:47,160 They could not find any evidence of him. 256 00:17:47,160 --> 00:17:48,160 The family is shattered. 257 00:17:48,160 --> 00:17:53,880 They were in the process of making funeral arrangements and now all of that was on hold 258 00:17:53,880 --> 00:17:56,160 and they were back in limbo. 259 00:17:56,160 --> 00:18:00,520 His father says, quote, if they all left together, they should be together. 260 00:18:00,520 --> 00:18:03,000 I just want to know what happened. 261 00:18:03,000 --> 00:18:07,920 My son was strong, so maybe he got out, tried to save his friends and got swept down the 262 00:18:07,920 --> 00:18:08,920 river. 263 00:18:08,920 --> 00:18:13,560 He was the kind of person who would fight for his friends, end quote. 264 00:18:13,560 --> 00:18:19,920 Police send divers back into the river to try to find any sign of Amp or his remains. 265 00:18:19,920 --> 00:18:25,240 They're also looking for a tire and a rim that was not on the car but was not recovered 266 00:18:25,240 --> 00:18:27,480 from the river either. 267 00:18:27,480 --> 00:18:29,120 Nothing is found. 268 00:18:29,120 --> 00:18:33,960 As Amp's friends are all laid to rest, the case goes cold. 269 00:18:33,960 --> 00:18:39,280 At the one year anniversary of the friends missing, so this would be May of 2000, there 270 00:18:39,280 --> 00:18:43,240 was still no real answers in the cause of the crash. 271 00:18:43,240 --> 00:18:48,120 Families of the other victims say that they got a crash report but it didn't say anything. 272 00:18:48,120 --> 00:18:52,640 It only mentioned that the car was only going about five miles per hour when it entered 273 00:18:52,640 --> 00:18:53,640 the water. 274 00:18:53,640 --> 00:18:57,520 There is still no real progress in finding Amp. 275 00:18:57,520 --> 00:19:02,680 The Alabama Bureau of Investigation searched the river eight more times after the rest 276 00:19:02,680 --> 00:19:08,040 of the bodies were found, but they didn't end up recovering any sign of Amp. 277 00:19:08,040 --> 00:19:12,680 They did find the missing windshield of the car that was buried about eight feet deep 278 00:19:12,680 --> 00:19:13,680 in mud. 279 00:19:13,680 --> 00:19:20,920 By July of 2000, so this would be just over a year since Amp vanished, the search is officially 280 00:19:20,920 --> 00:19:23,280 called off for him. 281 00:19:23,280 --> 00:19:28,300 Police believe that his body is somewhere in the river or that it could have possibly 282 00:19:28,300 --> 00:19:31,400 been attacked by alligators. 283 00:19:31,400 --> 00:19:35,600 Police also readily admit that they do not know how the crash occurred and that they 284 00:19:35,600 --> 00:19:37,120 may never know. 285 00:19:37,120 --> 00:19:44,160 In May of 2001, so two years since Amp vanished, and a friend of his family's is a Navy reserve 286 00:19:44,160 --> 00:19:49,680 with a unit that specializes in detecting underwater mines. 287 00:19:49,680 --> 00:19:54,400 The friend thought that he and his unit could search the river for a sign of Amp. 288 00:19:54,400 --> 00:19:59,080 The ABI agrees to let the unit search the area, and within 10 minutes of being in the 289 00:19:59,080 --> 00:20:05,040 water, the team finds a black jacket embedded in the bottom of the river. 290 00:20:05,040 --> 00:20:07,940 The team works to bring the jacket up. 291 00:20:07,940 --> 00:20:13,200 They say they have a difficult time because the river bottom is hard sand. 292 00:20:13,200 --> 00:20:19,040 It would have been easier for items to sink if it was soft sand, they say. 293 00:20:19,040 --> 00:20:22,120 The ABI has the jacket sent for testing. 294 00:20:22,120 --> 00:20:28,440 However, just looking at it, no one could visually ID it as Amp's, and no one is sure 295 00:20:28,440 --> 00:20:31,360 exactly what he was wearing the night he vanished. 296 00:20:31,360 --> 00:20:35,200 But to date, there has been no updates about this jacket. 297 00:20:35,200 --> 00:20:41,280 But I believe that had they been able to confirm that this jacket belonged to Amp, he wouldn't 298 00:20:41,280 --> 00:20:44,280 be listed as a missing person. 299 00:20:44,280 --> 00:20:51,440 But that is really all we know about the disappearance of James Anthony Amp Reynolds. 300 00:20:51,440 --> 00:20:58,760 So if you know anything about Amp's disappearance in May of 1999, or his whereabouts today, 301 00:20:58,760 --> 00:21:06,800 please call Sergeant Simon Benson at 251-578-1315. 302 00:21:06,800 --> 00:21:12,760 So that is the case of James Anthony Amp Reynolds. 303 00:21:12,760 --> 00:21:16,700 And this is a case, like I mentioned at the top, that is a little bit different than ones 304 00:21:16,700 --> 00:21:21,360 we've covered in the past, and one that I kind of wrestled with if it's one I should 305 00:21:21,360 --> 00:21:23,160 cover here. 306 00:21:23,160 --> 00:21:31,840 Because it does seem like there is an answer to this case, that Amp's body got lost in 307 00:21:31,840 --> 00:21:37,000 the river somehow, whether it just got washed away, or if there was animal interference, 308 00:21:37,000 --> 00:21:40,600 that that's ultimately what happened to him. 309 00:21:40,600 --> 00:21:46,020 But then there are just some things about his story and the story of the other five 310 00:21:46,020 --> 00:21:50,000 as well that just left a lot of questions for me. 311 00:21:50,000 --> 00:21:56,920 And you know, ultimately, Amp's family would still like closure and would still like to 312 00:21:56,920 --> 00:21:59,640 be able to put him to rest. 313 00:21:59,640 --> 00:22:04,980 And I'm sure the rest of the families would also like answers in exactly what happened 314 00:22:04,980 --> 00:22:07,000 in this crash. 315 00:22:07,000 --> 00:22:12,360 The police have said that they may never know, and it seems like it's not a case that they 316 00:22:12,360 --> 00:22:16,880 are actively working or trying to get answers in. 317 00:22:16,880 --> 00:22:22,440 But I wonder if with advances in technology that we have, if this might be something they 318 00:22:22,440 --> 00:22:27,520 can look at again and look to see how this crash could have occurred. 319 00:22:27,520 --> 00:22:32,920 Why, this case just like really surprised me in a lot of ways. 320 00:22:32,920 --> 00:22:36,720 It was really surprising to hear about six missing people. 321 00:22:36,720 --> 00:22:39,760 Vanishing without a trace, that nobody would see anything. 322 00:22:39,760 --> 00:22:46,960 But then, you know, when they find the car in the river, I can kind of, you know, rationalize 323 00:22:46,960 --> 00:22:54,320 it like, okay, it was, you know, 3am in the morning, a little bit after, country roads, 324 00:22:54,320 --> 00:22:56,320 not a lot of people out at that time. 325 00:22:56,320 --> 00:23:02,560 So I guess it is possible that a car could go off the road and nobody would see or hear 326 00:23:02,560 --> 00:23:03,560 anything. 327 00:23:03,560 --> 00:23:09,520 But then just more questions started to kind of creep into my head. 328 00:23:09,520 --> 00:23:15,640 Like, what they seem to know about the crash, or what they theorize, I guess, about the 329 00:23:15,640 --> 00:23:18,400 crash. 330 00:23:18,400 --> 00:23:24,080 I don't understand how the car, for one, ends up flipped on the bottom of the river. 331 00:23:24,080 --> 00:23:27,600 Like police say it was upside down when they found it. 332 00:23:27,600 --> 00:23:32,760 So maybe like if the river current is strong enough, it could, you know, flip it as it 333 00:23:32,760 --> 00:23:34,200 was sinking. 334 00:23:34,200 --> 00:23:36,480 Like, maybe that's possible. 335 00:23:36,480 --> 00:23:41,400 But if the car only entered at five miles per hour, that doesn't seem like it's going 336 00:23:41,400 --> 00:23:50,720 to like, have the oomph, you know, the momentum behind it to kind of flip on its own accord. 337 00:23:50,720 --> 00:23:53,560 So I just like, how did it get upside down? 338 00:23:53,560 --> 00:23:55,720 Was the river that strong? 339 00:23:55,720 --> 00:23:56,880 Maybe. 340 00:23:56,880 --> 00:24:04,600 But then it sounds like family of the six were at that bridge and kind of looked for 341 00:24:04,600 --> 00:24:11,560 signs that evening, you know, within hours of what time the crash is theorized based 342 00:24:11,560 --> 00:24:16,360 off of the watch that was found, you know, in the car. 343 00:24:16,360 --> 00:24:18,360 And they're saying they didn't see any broken limbs. 344 00:24:18,360 --> 00:24:19,640 They didn't see tire tracks. 345 00:24:19,640 --> 00:24:23,000 They didn't, they didn't see any signs that a crash had occurred. 346 00:24:23,000 --> 00:24:27,020 So that was like interesting to me. 347 00:24:27,020 --> 00:24:31,920 And then, you know, the fact that that area had been searched and like police had felt 348 00:24:31,920 --> 00:24:35,720 pretty confidently that they had searched that area and it had been cleared. 349 00:24:35,720 --> 00:24:42,800 So there's just like some elements where I'm like, I don't know if that fits or this fits 350 00:24:42,800 --> 00:24:51,960 or if it all did just like work out in a very strange way where it did just really the car 351 00:24:51,960 --> 00:24:54,360 just like kind of disappeared into the river. 352 00:24:54,360 --> 00:25:00,800 It's very, it just, it leaves me with a lot of questions of how this car ended up there. 353 00:25:00,800 --> 00:25:02,800 Like, yes, they had been out at the club. 354 00:25:02,800 --> 00:25:03,800 Yes, it was late. 355 00:25:03,800 --> 00:25:07,560 Like, yes, all of them had been reported to be drinking. 356 00:25:07,560 --> 00:25:12,640 I do believe toxology reports were taken, but those results were never released to the 357 00:25:12,640 --> 00:25:14,320 public as far as I could find. 358 00:25:14,320 --> 00:25:21,240 So we don't know, you know, were they all, you know, over legal limits and drunk or, 359 00:25:21,240 --> 00:25:23,840 you know, was somebody truly sober enough to drive. 360 00:25:23,840 --> 00:25:29,300 So, you know, it's, there's a lot of questions in this case, which is ultimately why I decided 361 00:25:29,300 --> 00:25:30,960 to bring it to Cold and Missing. 362 00:25:30,960 --> 00:25:37,840 I think for missing people, there doesn't always have to be a criminal element in the 363 00:25:37,840 --> 00:25:45,280 case that sometimes folks go missing just because of horrible circumstances and they 364 00:25:45,280 --> 00:25:50,160 deserve to be covered and talked about just as much as, you know, if they're, if somebody 365 00:25:50,160 --> 00:25:54,160 disappears under suspicious circumstances. 366 00:25:54,160 --> 00:26:00,000 So ultimately I made the decision to bring it to the podcast and to you all. 367 00:26:00,000 --> 00:26:07,200 So yeah, I, I hope that this case can ultimately get answers. 368 00:26:07,200 --> 00:26:12,200 You know, maybe I don't know if there's any evidence left in this case that could be tested 369 00:26:12,200 --> 00:26:14,660 again, you know, with advances in DNA. 370 00:26:14,660 --> 00:26:19,040 Maybe now they could find traces of AMP and give his family the answers that they're looking 371 00:26:19,040 --> 00:26:20,520 for. 372 00:26:20,520 --> 00:26:22,920 It just, it seems strange to me. 373 00:26:22,920 --> 00:26:29,840 And also the fact that none of them had broken bones, like they kind of specifically mentioned 374 00:26:29,840 --> 00:26:32,240 like no broken bones. 375 00:26:32,240 --> 00:26:41,340 And to me, six people, well, five people dying in a car crash, potentially six. 376 00:26:41,340 --> 00:26:49,240 To me, it seems like broken bones would play an element in the crash at some point, but 377 00:26:49,240 --> 00:26:54,000 then again, if they entered the water at five miles per hour, would it have been a strong 378 00:26:54,000 --> 00:26:55,500 enough impact? 379 00:26:55,500 --> 00:26:59,560 And if not, how did they die? 380 00:26:59,560 --> 00:27:00,780 Just raises questions. 381 00:27:00,780 --> 00:27:06,740 And then it also appears that a lot of rumors circulated quickly in this case, which when 382 00:27:06,740 --> 00:27:12,560 police are unable to provide answers, it leaves a lot of room open for the rumor mill and 383 00:27:12,560 --> 00:27:19,480 for people to try to make sense of it on their own and maybe state things as fact that maybe 384 00:27:19,480 --> 00:27:22,880 aren't, but just lots of questions in this case. 385 00:27:22,880 --> 00:27:27,440 And I really hope we can get answers for six families. 386 00:27:27,440 --> 00:27:29,400 That's so many people that's affected. 387 00:27:29,400 --> 00:27:35,400 And a lot of them were young parents, so their children had to grow up without them and that's 388 00:27:35,400 --> 00:27:40,520 unfair and they deserve to know what took their parents away from them. 389 00:27:40,520 --> 00:27:43,880 They deserve answers in this case too, if they want them. 390 00:27:43,880 --> 00:27:49,920 So I really hope that maybe somebody can look at this case again with newer technology, 391 00:27:49,920 --> 00:27:55,440 smarter technology and really provide some answers. 392 00:27:55,440 --> 00:27:57,880 Do like crash reconstruction. 393 00:27:57,880 --> 00:28:01,720 Like I know these things are available and I don't know much about car crash or like 394 00:28:01,720 --> 00:28:08,320 physics to be frank, but hopefully we can find Amp and bring him home so that way he 395 00:28:08,320 --> 00:28:09,800 can be put to rest. 396 00:28:09,800 --> 00:28:16,880 But again, if you know anything about the disappearance of James Anthony Amp Reynolds 397 00:28:16,880 --> 00:28:28,920 in May of 1999 or his whereabouts today, please call Sergeant Simon Benson at 251-578-1315. 398 00:28:28,920 --> 00:28:32,920 Even though Eli is sick, he was still able to make the graphics for us this week. 399 00:28:32,920 --> 00:28:38,400 So if you head to our Instagram at Cold and Missing, you'll see pictures not only of Amp, 400 00:28:38,400 --> 00:28:43,400 but you'll also see pictures of all six who went missing that night with him. 401 00:28:43,400 --> 00:28:47,920 And then also a picture of the car being pulled from the river. 402 00:28:47,920 --> 00:28:52,560 So all of that will be on our Instagram at Cold and Missing. 403 00:28:52,560 --> 00:28:56,240 Also if you could take some time today to rate and review us if you haven't, I would 404 00:28:56,240 --> 00:28:58,400 appreciate it so much. 405 00:28:58,400 --> 00:29:04,040 Also just as like a nerdy woo woo thing on Apple Podcast, we're like one review away 406 00:29:04,040 --> 00:29:11,380 from 77 reviews, written reviews, or no, just general reviews, just general reviews, 77. 407 00:29:11,380 --> 00:29:16,120 So if you have Apple Podcast and you haven't reviewed us yet, if you could, I think it 408 00:29:16,120 --> 00:29:18,520 would be so cool just to see 77. 409 00:29:18,520 --> 00:29:23,240 It's like an angel number thing and it's very woo woo, but you could totally make that happen. 410 00:29:23,240 --> 00:29:25,440 So you can rate and review us there. 411 00:29:25,440 --> 00:29:29,000 You could do it on Spotify, wherever your podcast player is. 412 00:29:29,000 --> 00:29:33,640 And you can also do it on our website at www.coldandmissing.com. 413 00:29:33,640 --> 00:29:36,800 We also have our official transcripts on there. 414 00:29:36,800 --> 00:29:42,000 So if you or a loved one is hard of hearing, you could follow along with the podcast there. 415 00:29:42,000 --> 00:29:44,280 But that is all I have for you. 416 00:29:44,280 --> 00:29:46,840 Thank you so much for listening to Cold and Missing. 417 00:29:46,840 --> 00:29:48,340 I'm your host, Allie. 418 00:29:48,340 --> 00:29:55,680 Have a good week and stay safe, y'all.