Chance Englebert, 25, was last seen alive on July 6, 2019, after he walked away from his in-laws home in Gering, Nebraska following an alleged argument.
The rodeo star was spending the Fourth of July weekend with his wife Baylee's family and their infant son when he disappeared.
Englebert's remains were discovered last month by a hiker in a remote area on the Scotts Bluff National Monument. Investigators traced it to the performer through DNA.
His mother Dawn Englebert told Cowboy State Daily that she was told by police the cause of death was deemed to be an accidental fall, but she remains unconvinced.
She told the outlet that the area where Englebert was found was difficult terrain that is not often used by hikers, and said the news 'is not closure to us at all'.
'Our hearts hurt more than ever,' she said.
Englebert's disappearance sparked a widespread search for years, with his desperate family offering huge rewards for information leading to Englebert.
By signing up, you will receive our newsletter as well as marketing emails with news, offers and updates from the Daily Mail. You can unsubscribe at any time. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.
Englebert, who was well known in the rodeo circuit, had recently been laid off from his job at a coal mine, but had a secured a new gig that was set to start after the July Fourth holiday.
The star vanished following an alleged argument with his wife's family while they were golfing on July 6, 2019, following which he reportedly told his wife that he wanted to leave.
According to reports at the time, his wife argued against leaving, so he stormed off on his own and told her he planned to walk 35 miles to the town of Torrington.
Englebert was last seen on surveillance video hiking alone in bad weather in the neighboring town of Terrytown, around a mile and a half from his wife's family's home in Gering.
In the video, officials said he was seen looking down at his phone before taking a 90 degree turn, appearing to take directions from his device.
At 9:08pm that night, Englebert sent a text to his mother with just a jumble of letters and a smiley face emoji that she said made no sense, reports the Cowboy State Daily.
He was never seen alive again, until the cold case re-ignited a month ago when a hiker stumbled across his remains.
Dawn said she is skeptical over the claims that her son died by accidentally falling, saying he was found in a remote area that was not a typical route to Torrington.
'They feel he chose that trail as a short cut to Torrington,' she said.
She said investigators had previously told her they believed Englebert was tracking back to his in-laws home when he vanished, but said they now do not believe that to be the case.
'This is not closure to us at all, but only more whys,' she said.
Longtime Gering resident Kelly Mumm told Cowboy State Daily that locals have also raised doubts over Englebert's death, and said the area he was found is not known to be used for walking.
Mumm said while the Monument park area is popular with hikers, all the trails are on the south side, as the north side where Englebert was found is too difficult to traverse.
He said when he visited the scene of his remains, he speculated that Englebert would have had to wade across a 15 foot canal and walk through thick brush to climb up to where he was found.
'That'd be the longest way I could imagine you could walk to Torrington,' Mumm said. 'Especially at night in the rain.'
On the day he vanished, Englebert, spent the day golfing and drinking with his wife's family when someone allegedly made a comment about his new job that had upset him.
His friend, Matt Miller, told NewsNation that Englebert had called him and asked for a ride.
'He sounded upset. He wanted to get the heck out of Nebraska. He got in a fight with his in-laws and he was wanting to come back to Wyoming, to his house here in Moorcroft and needed a ride immediately,' Miller said.
'I was four hours away. It was just no way. And we were in the middle of the Fourth of July party at my house, so there was just no way I could make it.'
At one point, his grandmother offered a $200,000 reward for information leading to his discovery which expired on his 30th birthday, December 2, 2023.
No comments:
Post a Comment