For his whole life, Adam John “A.J.” Breaux lived in Houma, Louisiana. He had three daughters and was well-known throughout his hometown for his retail experience– with over 30 years under his belt working at Earl Williams Clothing Store.

“He was darn good at his job,” said A.J.’s daughter, Tania Guidry.

“Men would walk into the store, and he would automatically know their sizes. He is the happiest, most pleasant man to be around. He loved to help people.”

In 1991, the 50-year-old had also been sober for eight years. Prior to getting clean, A.J. had battled alcoholism– which resulted in a drunk driving arrest.

But he eventually turned his life around– joining an AA group known as The Easy Does It Club and attending meetings nearly every evening.

“Once he got involved with the program, it changed his whole life. He became even more responsible and more dependable and more trustworthy and more of a friend because he was involved with more people,” A.J.’s daughter, Melissa Tardo, said.

The 50-year-old was also inspired to help others start their own journey to sobriety. However, on August 28, 1991, everything mysteriously changed.

That evening, A.J. attended an AA meeting before leaving The Easy Does It Club at about 10:00 p.m. Afterward, he visited a convenience store on Barrow Street to purchase a gallon of milk.

Once A.J. finished the transaction and exited the store with the milk, though, the father of three was never seen again.

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The following morning, after he failed to get home, A.J.’s daughters contacted the police and reported him missing.

Authorities discovered A.J.’s car within a few hours– abandoned in a park just across the street from his AA club. And at that point, Melissa grew concerned.

“I immediately thought foul play because it just wouldn’t be like him to park his car where everybody could find it, and everybody knows him, and disappear,” she said.

In spite of Melissa’s hunch, investigators found no indicators of foul play. The only evidence they recovered was A.J.’s checkbook and wallet, which had been tucked underneath the front seat of the vehicle.

Soon afterward, though, a handful of witnesses did come forward. They claimed to have spotted A.J. in town in the days after he disappeared.

One resident, Kenneth Pelligran, recalled how he ran into the 50-year-old outside of a convenience store. After knowing A.J. his whole life, though, Kenneth claimed to know something was off.

“It was a strange situation for me to see him in because he just didn’t look the same as he always did,” Kenneth detailed.

“He was wearing a flannel shirt, something like a lumberjack style, and the pants were loose fitting, brown, very loose fitting; it wasn’t neat. And he was wearing some old tennis shoes,” Kenneth continued.

“So that struck me as wrong because of all the times I’ve known him since 7-years-old, I’ve never seen him with his hair out of place or not dressed up neat. A.J. was nervous. It was like he was being watched.”

Kenneth also revealed how he spotted a compact red car sitting out front of the convenience store. The vehicle reportedly had three men sitting inside with the engine running; meanwhile, A.J. had been on the phone and looking toward the car.

After Kenneth exited the store, though, both the car and A.J. were gone.

“Had I known A.J. had been missing, he would’ve been found then because I knew who he was,” he said.

Houma Police Department Detective Troy Naquin received another call from a different witness who recalled a similar sighting. The witness claimed to have seen A.J. in a vehicle with three gentlemen traveling along a rural route approximately eight miles out of town.

The witness reportedly waved to A.J. after spotting the 50-year-old. However, A.J. did not wave back– which was very uncharacteristic of him.

Nonetheless, the witness did not know the 50-year-old had been missing at the time. So, he did not think anything of the odd interaction.

Now, even though neither of these leads led to any substantial clues, A.J.’s daughter Melissa believed the witnesses’ statements.

“It makes me think that somebody definitely knows something,” she admitted.

“If both of these gentlemen who know him from a good while back, one a lot longer than the other, have seen him, we know that they know what he looks like, and they both saw him in the same color car with three men in it. I am pretty much convinced that somebody, somewhere, knows something.”

Then, two weeks after those sightings were reported, a handwritten note was delivered to the police station. It contained a chilling message.

“A.J. Breaux. He was drunk at the time. Self-inflicted gunshot wound. Stomach. Drawstring cotton sack. Put in by a friend. Rolled over steep grassy Bayou bank. Near dam,’ the note read. It was also signed with the name “Helene.”

Upon receiving this note, Detective Naquin realized that the description matched a nearby region. So, the sheriff’s office water patrol units were called in. Authorities ultimately dredged both sides of the dam three separate times. Unfortunately, though, no evidence was ever found.

Finally, four weeks following A.J.’s disappearance, a resident named Christy Boudreaux claimed to have been approached by a seemingly homeless man while she was sitting on her front porch in Lockport, Louisiana.

She recalled how she saw a van drive up and two the street twice– the driver appearing to be lost. Then, Christy claimed to have seen the driver, a man, reach over to pick up a bag. She had no idea what was in the bag until the man got out and approached her porch.

“As he walked towards me, he looked really nervous, and he was shaking. He wanted to know if I wanted to buy some frozen fish,” Christy explained.

“And I told him no, and I smelled alcohol on his breath. He looked homeless, kind of straggly. And as he got, I’d say, 10 feet from me, he turned around and glanced at me. That’s when it hit me that I saw that man on a missing person flyer in the post office.”

Christy later went to the police station, where she identified pictures of A.J. Afterward, she reportedly told authorities that he was “99.9% sure” that the man she spoke with was A.J.

Due to this, Detective Naquin suggested that the 50-year-old might have suffered from memory loss following a relapse.

“A.J. Breaux is a recovering alcoholic, and if he did start drinking again, there are all sorts of things that could’ve happened. He could’ve had a blackout and not remembered who he was,” Det. Naquin said.

Still, A.J.’s daughters refuse to believe that their father started drinking again or disappeared by choice. Instead, they are adamant that A.J. was targeted because of his orientation and status as an AA  member.

“We firmly believe that’s why our dad isn’t here today,” Melissa told Houma Today.

“Not only was he an AA member and a [gay man], but he worked in a men’s clothing store. For 30 years, he could not say he was gay because men in the community had to go be fitted by him. He had no other trade, so that was his way of life.”

Unfortunately, though, there have been no substantial leads or arrests in A.J.’s case. So, he has remained missing for over 31 years now.

In 1998, A.J. was declared legally dead by a judge. But, being granted the death certificate did not change anything for A.J.’s daughters– who continue searching for answers in their father’s cold case.

“It doesn’t matter how small or how long ago it was. One little tip can solve the whole thing. It can just be a little thing. It takes courage, and we appreciate anyone who can come forward,” Melissa pleaded.

At the time of his disappearance, A.J. was five foot eleven, weighed approximately 160 pounds, and had brown hair and brown eyes. If you have any information regarding the disappearance or whereabouts of Adam John “A.J.” Breaux, you are urged to contact the Houma Police Department at (985) 873-6371.

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