Episode 87 David Schultz
In the first episode of 2024, we explore the bizarre case of David Schultz, a 53 year old married trucker and father, who vanished without a trace in the early morning hours of November 21st, 2023. David was transporting a load of pigs in Sac County, Iowa. He didn't show up for his delivery, which was unlike him. Phone calls to his cell phone went unanswered. Later that day, David's tractor trailer was found parked and turned off in the middle of rural two lane U.S. Highway 71. The load of pigs David was transporting remained undisturbed and accounted for on his trailer. David's wallet containing a good amount of cash, and his cell phone were found inside the cab. In a ditch nearby, his jacket was found, but there was no sign of David himself. It was noted that David's truck was found facing North, but the spot he needed to deliver to in Sac City was to the South. When police reviewed surveillance footage of a stop David made at the Mile Marker 126 truck stop just after 11pm on the night of the 20th, there seemed to be nothing unusual captured; David had stopped there for about 16 minutes, and didn't appear to talk to anyone. He had a drink and checked his cell phone before driving off. Cellphone data shows David's phone arrived at Hwy 20 & 71 at about 12:18 a.m. The data shows the phone traveling north to where the truck was found. Data suggests the truck may have been there since about 12:40 a.m.
Searches of the area were done, and while no sign of David was found, on a search done on December 2nd, 2023, a team found the remains of a missing Rockwell City man, 54-year-old Mark Edward Riesberg, on a wooded property southwest of Jolley. Riesberg was found in his PT Cruiser, the apparent victim of a self inflicted gunshot. He had been missing since late October. His cause of death is apparently suicide, and not connected to David's case.
David's wife Sarah is dumfounded by her husband's disappearance. She can think of no reason why he would willingly vanish, and feels that his disappearance is a case of foul play. She discusses this baffling case with us in this episode.
David Schultz is described as a White male, 5ft11, 190 lbs, with Brown hair and Brown eyes. He was last known to be wearing wrangler blue jeans, cowboy boots, and a Peterbilt hat. The truck he was driving when he vanished is a Red & White Peterbilt.
Anyone with information about David Schultz’s disappearance is asked to call the Sac County Sheriff’s Office at 712-662-7127 or the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation at 712-262-1873.
There is a reward of $2,000 being offered in this case.
David's family has been financially impacted by his disapperance, and a Gofundme has been set up to help get them through this difficult time. Please contribute if you can.
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