I Solved The Disappearance Of My Dad's Best Friend

[Music] this story could go a million different ways but the thing is that we have nothing people just some vanish like this do you know anything about him being in prison or anything jail no no not at all one of my biggest fears with this project is that regardless of the outcome that my father will be disappointed [Music] [Applause] you [Music] how about uh how do you feel about trying to find your friend after all this time well it's exciting because I be trying to see where how to get me excited that they would leave together and see how is possibility to to see where it is well we moved to San Francisco in 1985 your mom and I really love the city that many people we left our hearts in San Francisco I met Sarah admission odorous Park finished corporate boat and we start talking you will notice they sell you speak French because of my accent and what did you learn French and we've been talking about example bombs that's the place in South of France I like it was from there as well so so that's what we put us together this way because it's when a lot of things in common I was working in the hotel business it's the traditional predictable and work environment and people really nice nothing wrong observe was giving me a different side of life where life is about having fun that's why left he's working is it Germany's to becoming a salsa dance teacher and go around the world and discover the world so nights with the audience initially have a simple meal and certainly the one that one part ago to tell them rationally conclude music louder and even Cushi table it will take every on the dance floor and then the restaurant the caffeine will become a nightclub until you know fall five o'clock in the morning that was when was the last time you saw sash it was soon Bobby can drop me at the airport tomorrow I said why are you going as we are I need to go leave quickly we see that it was a live way to Cuba but they stopped in Mexico first and he didn't want with you papa cause he took that from in front and and then that's about last time I saw him what's there illegally in the country I know that some talent time he was working Northern California to work for farm but you know I don't think he had a work permit authority to teach salsa Anthony was there a race for sure his parents names were all their issues that is apparently nice friends Padma everything is the name of this parents are different than him oh it's keep she yeah you don't know why he would have changed his last name I don't know you know media did you meet any of his family no I miss her well he said he liked what they were still together he just left yeah oh yeah they were dating they worked together he lives you know Sarah really had a mark on me what doing my conscience so if Santa's who was one of the best part of our lives mrs. was followed this experience he must know like I said you cannot forget now as we age I want to see him and see how we can be connected and spend time together life is short so there's people living the life that you want to see again we will make extra sure to find them I'm gonna move over and talk to my brother cuz he you found one of the only light leads that we have about two years ago my dad told me the story and I thought was gonna be a simple Google search and pop up but he was an anomaly movies almost like he didn't want to be found only lead I got was from a photographer he posted an image from exactly the same time period it was just black and white beautiful shot over sound sales came from example balls I had a while though well-controlled streaking him love salsa and Spanish and lived among Brazilians down Mission way so this author Lalo Raisa here say ouch ended up in Havana so he did make his way to Cuba you're a contact form email come here to see Mellon I think the abrupt way in which he left San Francisco he's a little bit alarming as well but I wasn't telling you this but there's some stuff probably should talk to mama by but there's some stuff that he may have done I think there's more to the farm I think from what I've heard from mom you need to ask ask her these questions why would mom tell me about Papa you know about why he thinks - you think the best people all the time I think there may be more to it even though he most likely is it on Facebook or social media it doesn't hurt to check absolutely it's a very common name Hey honestly just grass people I have what I can so far this doesn't with manage pretty much no digital trace they're just making it hard so I think the best steps moving forward are gonna be to try and find people that know him or knew him and maybe then they can lead me to him [Music] respondent sorry to disappoint but I have not heard of word since I heard from him being cubed sometime in the early 90s I received a postcard from him from Havana said he was involved with a theater group dance etc but nothing else but the Colombian woman named Jenny in San Francisco is separated when he got busted sometime around 1988 project what do you mean you got busted was it a good time yes but he also uses a word who's on the lab - when means that he was running away from something so your thing was just like the immigration team no because if it's immigration I'm sure you didn't have the paperwork is staying in the United States but even if that was the case after he left the country I would have been done with but the fact that you want a lamb and then he's been so my communicative means that this means there was more at this story I'm sure there is a monkey hear me yes I can hear you I just want to know a little bit more about selves pop I mentioned that he worked on a farm was this a pot farm that he worked on he was working where they were growing marijuana illegally yes that that could be a reason for him leaving obviously you don't like oh I don't know members I think that they were raided maybe once to clarify he was raided because of just being a being there illegally I have anything yet well what Jenny she was also there illegally o-positive the thing is that cannot open a bank right so he has to have cash and I think he buried it he just buried money like a treasure Papa never mentioned anything about but you didn't mention anything about the the pot farm this story could go a million different ways but the thing is that we have nothing nothing so I had asked Lalo if you had any more make sure you give me as far as search goes I have not a clue of whatever happened after his disappearance and jumping bail in 1988 and 89 jumping bail that's that's a big and that obviously means that he was hounded by authorities for something this was always gonna be an uphill battle all the leads we've had come to a standstill especially with now all those saying that wasn't that close with him with every little thing we learned more it's just seems like this this whole process gets harder and the mystery surrounding salish gets a little deeper I think by the end of me cataloging all these different instructors and schools I'd probably be sending out probably around 50 to 70 emails tonight and I'm just hoping that one of these people know something know someone I was wearing some babe just a big waste of time if any of you out there either live in or have direct connections that can help me in either Havana Cuba or nice in the South of France please let me know I have a call right now with padeen busyness she's a French journalist who responded to my Instagram story that I posted a couple days ago asking for people in Nice or Havana to help out with a search it sounds like it was a very secretive person like maybe would need to do a bit more digging in his background baby my father said they never talk about his family and he never like it never reached out to your father I never gave any reason like it was just dead silence for like yeah that's what's weird to me too because even the photographer got a postcard I don't know people just don't vanish like this like did we'll find something I'm sure can you see me unfortunately nothing big yet you know so he was definitely in Havana in the early 90s Oh Lalo said like one the last time I saw him was after he he jumped bail do you know anything about him being in prison or anything jail no no no no not at all I mean I don't I mean you never mentioned that to me so that's new unfortunately there's not much else that I was able to find pop I'm sorry you don't have to be sorry thank you for trying baby thank you very much [Music] here is his first big one measured with this bad [Music] as much as my father paints out as this person that lights up a room and that brings people together so does my father when you see him with his family and friends you can tell how much people love him and then one of my biggest fears about this project is that regardless of the outcome that you know I'll just that my father will be disappointed you know and he'll never say that he's disappointed because he's just too good of a person to do that but I think that's even more of a reasonable high I kind of want to give this to him we found something we decided to go back to just using search engines looking for sale charm all we started using alternate search engines like duck taco in case they were indexing search results better than Google work and I guess we found something that we had missed maybe on Google it's a website for an Aikido School in France it said that at some point at the end of the 80s they were able to organize some sort of like session or class I guess with a dancer and choreographer so our mall but the more interesting part is is this it says that he sounds disappeared tragically under mysterious circumstances in 2006 in Cuba this articles written by someone named Jean Mattoon I managed to find his phone number so I mean we just give him a call Bonjour excuse you say Monsieur to dr. King I have aa doctor tune she told me about her optic issue of aliquot and she I keyed oh she was a belt buckle on your kind of shell shape when I need them on purpose I pass ceremony on say Pass Cecil mm cells are more [Music] this is like that well he'd make he's dissing healing that I'm wondering once were either a dead end or there's just more questions than there are answers which is kind of just how this entire investigation has been nice not I have you most from what's a high V most from blanking I got a double email from this guy he says the friend that introduced him to sale knew him in San Francisco with his sister in the 80s so it's the same cell basically he's saying that she was married to a learning bobbed eventhough I don't know if this sister is Sara's or if it's the sister of his friend and then on top that he says the friend that reduced me is named George Feeny he gives me the phone number of George this is what's interesting here he says it's George who told me about the brutal disappearance in Cuba that was apparently an assassination yeah yeah just after me and I'm a little shocked about the way he said that rule assassination that's what scares me too I mean an assassination is much more than just a disappearance I mean it could there's some sort of grants for them to think that it was an assassination my heart sank literally went to San Francisco and then it's not cute anymore when I read that the brutal disappearance because when you use words that grill disappearance for an apparent assassination it's just like let's have what happened to me I was gonna be crushed yeah we were on the front for like an hour he's got a lot to say he was very emotional when when he called me George told me Sept 1st journalist in Paris in no more than even a stroll he was very involved with questionable people from questionable organizations far-left movements very like how could I say this you need a minute on Chris mu as they go to Google me more very extremist like an extremist proof very extremist very very so he had like a huge network of people he used to hang out with very fashionable people very des Vosges people always taking risks at this time unison inches 80s he would always go to the Netherlands Latin America and he would always come back with a lot of cash another breach and you would never tell where he would be like but it done it was like I really felt I was in a movie when he told me all that and I was like wow okay this is just another level it's just crazy how many stories they have on this guy and no one knows what happened to him Pauline sent me some emails last night and she found something interesting on my heritage calm which says that slouched might have died of suicide and we didn't think about looking at my heritage calm because he's not American that was a big lapse on my part imagine what dr. Jim told us about him disappearing in Cuba under mysterious circumstances or being killed there if it's kind of mysterious circumstances a suicide is something that the police could rule it as he has a sister with the last-named eventhough listed on his profile and if you look at my emails with dr. doom he says here the friend who introduced me to Sam's new home in San Francisco with his sister in the 80s she married a lawyer with the last-named eventhough oh wow I think his sister passed away too in San Francisco she died in 1993 she wasn't making that sound to that there's a relative listed on the page I think she's don't want to create its algae's entry if we didn't touch her there that'd be incredible we don't know about but yet I think which I get as much information as it can I'll try to reach out to to Elizabeth relative hi is this mr. vataj really hi sorry to bother you I'm actually trying to help my father learn more about one of his best friends who disappeared 30 years ago who's actually related to you his name is Sal Jamal we were told it was a potentially a murder I mean how much do you know if his what happened in Cuba my father had no idea that he was living there with a sister no because he was about to be arrested for drug distribution apparently feeling loved survived he went out and then eventually Cuba and living there dancing but he never really seen he married a Cuban woman oh wow five jumping out about buildings the only way we know that that's very sorry for my posits that's that's just I didn't know that information would you be at all willing at some point to actually speak to my father just to share this information I think hearing it from you would mean a lot to him of course I appreciate that Lila cause reason why he jumped bail the reason was that he was busted for selling marijuana he was living at the time with a woman in the pictures Jenny it was said she turned him in not corroborated by anyone and the apparent reason was that Sarah had a terrible habit of a spousal abuse it seems like now I'm not only battling this question of how did he actually died was it a suicide wasn't murdered but now on top of that he was abusive I don't know if I should stop the project I don't know if I really don't know if I should stop the project at this point love's email says that his own girlfriend hated sales because she was the recipient of all the stories of abuse that she had been told by his girlfriend's at the time so that's multiple people I mean yeah I mean at this point I mean I did of course I mean at this point it's I'm at him if he was abusive or not it's a matter of like how do I tell the story with the knowledge that he is abusive or with stop telling the story maybe it's important [ __ ] yeah that shifted no Wendy we need to say that supposed to lose my heart is what this my head spinning long enough I'm sorry the hell was another shocker to me because I destroyed my perception completely about who he was as a person okay [ __ ] you stole you stole marijuana okay whatever but then but then abuse is another thing goose is like continued I mean like a buzz painted you paint this beautiful picture of this man he'll be [ __ ] devastated I mean I'm worried we're trying to get a hold of sales as nice to get the final bits of detail senator's cousin seems to believe it was a suicide you also mean that he told dr. tomb and they posted that it was actually a potential assassination Adam always commits suicide that's one I could believe someone being thrown off a building could be misconstrued as suicide - it's so specific but someone could also push you off a building of course how much do we tell Papa it's the question or do we tell him all I mean would he want to know everything you know the photographer told me that potentially the person that turns south into the police was actually his then-girlfriend and he mentioned that it might have been because sales had a habit of abuse it really doesn't surprise me you know their their father I don't I don't know that their father was physically abusive because he wasn't really around but he was certainly an emotionally abusive person a very emotionally abusive person so but I'm I'm not surprised to hear that but I never heard that myself you know their father was a really complicated guy on their birth certificate is not their biological father's name my grandfather and so I was retained a very romanticized hero picture of his father and later in life when my grandfather got very old that was said to my grandfather I want to come home and what I want to take care of you and my grandfather said no I don't want you to come home and take care of me I can take care of myself and he basically rejected Sascha's reaching out to be with him and I think this hurt so profoundly and I think that you know that was longed to have this connection with his father that I don't think he ever had and I think it really impacted him deeply the strongest memory I have is of the last time that my mom and sash saw each other and it was probably right before your dad drove him to the airport my mom was very sick at this point and he called my mom to bail him out of jail I think my father of Asli I was kind of like this kid who never grew up and was always meeting other people to take care of him and so here my mother was dying of cancer and he's calling to have her bail him out of jail which she did and then he came to say goodbye I just remember after he left how sad she looked she knew it was the last time she was ever gonna see him because she knew he was breaking the law by leaving and when be able to come back into the country and she also knew that she was really sick after my mom died we never heard a peep from him because it would have just been a reminder of all that he lost and then I learned about his suicide and then sometime after that I was contacted by his widow remember she went to share with me about herself and her life with souch and how much he'd meant to her I don't know that there was a note or anything like that I know that it was a hotel dilemma could certainly give you that information if she felt open to that some people suspected that she might have been sick some people suspected that maybe he had debt you know there were all kinds of like suspicions of what it was but you know I I actually did see him one last time than France about a year before he died I got the sense when I met him and talked to him that he was a deeply unhappy person yet there was this other vivillon that was there but that it was masking a very very profound loneliness and unhappiness he had charisma and like some of that were born with and some of that we I think build up in order to defend ourselves from the sad feelings that we can have you may only know of his death but the 30 could even be involved in my beauties obviously terrible and egg no settable and it's frustrating because I wish I could just call again the truth from him is how quickly because you know you have some flashback math and then there are people moments along with that machs make your own marks in your life and then circle these people and now I feel like I don't even know who he was [Music] well I guess when I'm worried about as far as my father is is that through uncovering all this I've distorted all these positive beautiful memories he had not just have sales but specifically their friendship the impact sales I had on him and this time in his life which I think he views as some of the best years of his life and I'm just scared that this truth that I've unearthed has tainted it what would you do what would you do if you were to see him again in person oh it hurts long a long time I'm showing the blue ball whines and then so busy can work in the desk took two of us even if there's nobody around us are dancing and so put us from something I'm busy because some Brazilian and we'll do the dance around the room that's what we'll do you you hi Pauline this is my father it is Simone hi sweetie bozo bozo bozo mr. científico so non-emotional ask a search medicine emotionally for Microsoft's hearing pretty tough for my co but Donna pestle dis same or medicinal tonic comment at your back wanna be empty 3d Appleby hello Sarah's of tamuca Choza traversée la vie particular parameter uncertainty Kingu Argentine dissipate revealing more about s-curl Yaya said fastened of while explicit auto shows so unity Bozzio clear purple associate applicable when I see that Abdullah busy potato shizuha aki meku karate special master Shabazz fukiko power from the leak detected agreement server second candle crystal detail Caribous wanted $32 to choose to move quickly to the problem the study yeah you see the cow the donkey tail $0 dollar fee Casino Resort Phuket passes Adam went Olivia heavy element in the pub to see OCC yesterday Moshe Papa seat anime mythology yeah there no more mor sorry ma incroyable to skip evil she purposely honestly I don't think anybody really knew who sells was except for himself and I think that's the tale of life in generals like how well do you know someone I want do you actually know someone what they're putting on I think that's one thing he was struggling with as a person some people Club the happiness it's without sadness I'm knowing everything now that you know are you glad that you know this information yes I'm glad to know because I rather Moodle choose but it's difficult because I have to find a way to keep all these beautiful memories that have we said while living with the darker truth or who he really was he with the mysteries ending and that's the person he was mysteries he said is similar to the story of the person I was happy that I got to work on this project with you and I thank you for letting me tell the story of you and your friend thank you thank you thank you both of you and did it I'm glad we did it too [Music] cRIO bode aha Marlo eat ambien podia hodr lo car TN TN estradiol como lo vo SE como los in co y como lo v vo yo tengo la mina todos las cosas más que una pareja ave SE hablamos una pareja arabic una familia con el poder momento que fueron del estado race pero también poder momento que fueron muy hermoso a spiritual meant a metro full oh yes oyo siempre se lo voy a hacer cómo es qué VA Strasser Co mm en las palabras you had played the part of stun innocent abandoned in the dollar when he was young drum five countries I've seen many fire things never loved this man shake cages shaken out of their skin a picture of little boys here each to watch that Sun and what signs gone through the clouds [Music] when the stitches slip my seams into the darkness God with our dreams [Music]

Channel: undefined

Views: 5,042,505

Rating: 4.9562073 out of 5

Keywords: buzzfeed, buzzfeedunsolved, buzzfeedunsolvednetwork, buzzfeed unsolved network, bun, aria inthavong, buzzfeed aria, I Solved The Disappearance Of My Dad's Best Friend, missing persons, missing person, missing persons case, disappearance, cold case, true crime, mystery, unsolved mystery, unsolved mysteries, investigation, creepy, mysterious, buzzfeed merle and aria, documentary, france, san francisco, tragic, tragedy, family tragedy, SffZ, pWRq

Id: V85foK6YrlQ

Length: 33min 12sec (1992 seconds)

Published: Sun Jun 21 2020

Reddit Comments

[u/pleok]

The story is very well done and I recommend watching. It's just over 30 minutes and worth your time. It poses a significant question: If beautiful memories you have of someone you loved long ago are based on a lie, would you prefer to discover the truth now - and forever change your perception of that person for the worse - or leave your beautiful memories as they are? It also weaves in a nice secondary storyline about a son and his father, which is a bonus for watching it on Father's Day.

[u/Blighthaus]

Interesting story, good internet sleuthing. Human beings are strange and complex... really enjoyed this sad story.

[u/mznavich]

Can someone watch it for me and tell me how he did it?

[u/Frizeo]

It always interests me how someone could live life the way Serge did; taking so many risks, but also "enjoying" life to the fullest.

[u/PipeDownNerd]

His brother having to stop and explain his reaction every time he had a dramatic reaction to something really got on my nerves. We get it, you want to act.

[u/bear_of_the_woods]

Hugh Jackman was missing? 😉

[u/Aladdin_Caine]

I think more than anything, I want a French papa who calls me bebe as an adult.

[u/DownVoteBecauseISaid]

That BuzzFeed acting was weird af

[u/TeamShonuff]

Absolutely beautiful. Wonderful documentary. What a gift to one's father.