Photo courtesy of The Charley Project

He agreed to be the pawn in a drug sting after his mother received threatening calls over the Christmas holidays. Unfortunately, drug stings don’t always turn out like they do in the movies, and Randy’s brothers watched in horror as the car sped away out of the reach of law enforcement. 47 years later and the family still doesn’t know what happened to Randy Brosius.

Randall B. Brosius, 22, had a rocky past that involved drugs, but he was getting his life together by the Christmas holiday in 1976. Christmas cheer was in the air, the shopping season was in full swing, and everything was bliss. That’s what Christmas is supposed to be, anyway. During the festivities, the Brosius family was being terrorized by an unknown blackmailer.

Randy’s mother received a demand for $500, saying that Randy was involved in a big drug deal. The blackmailer threatened to cut Randy up in pieces and send him to her if she didn’t pay. Terror-stricken, the poor mother, found the money and tried to deliver it to the dropzone in Williamstown, Pennsylvania. She had one hour to get there. Although she made it well within the allotted time, the blackmailer never arrived.

After all of this, Randall went to the police for help. He agreed to a “meet up” with the police waiting in the shadows. His brother and father were there, as well. He had nothing to fear. Unfortunately, things don’t always go as planned, and somehow by some terrible twist of fate, Randy was taken.

The newspaper accounts make it sound so innocent. They claim Randy was last seen in a car driving away from Mace’s Fountain Blue Motel with two men. Richard Green, 31, and Kenneth H. Lenker, 25. In reality, that was the last time his family or the police ever saw him. The two men were later found in Florida and questioned, but no arrests were ever made.

What happened to Randy Brosius?

A John Doe was found in Hewett, TX, on April 3, 1978. The twenty-something male had been shot in the back of the head and dumped in a culvert. His height and weight closely match that of Randy. The clothing wasn’t a match to what Randy was last seen wearing, but we’re talking 15 months later.

The man’s flamboyant clothes are what lead investigators to call him Disco Dan. Unfortunately, the Hewett police department only had two officers, and the John Doe case went cold rather quickly.

The family wonders if this could be their long lost Randy. There’s a possibility since one of the men he was last seen with ended up in Texas. At the time of his disappearance, Randy had long shoulder-length brown hair and a mustache. He was around 5′ 7,” and his weight was approximately 140 lbs. All of these things closely match Disco Dan.

I noticed when comparing the two photos; the nose seems really similar to me. Who knows. We will have to wait for the DNA results. I’ll keep you posted. In the meantime, if you know anything about the disappearance of Randall Brosius or the John Doe known as Disco Dan, please call in a tip. These families need answers.

If you enjoy this content don’t forget to sign up for Synova’s Weekly True Crime Newsletter. You will receive exclusive content directly in your inbox. As a gift for joining you will also receive the Grim Justice e-book free.

Each week Synova highlights obscure cold cases on her blog as a victim’s advocate. She never charges for her services. If you’d like to help support Synova in this worthy cause please check out the affiliate links below. By purchasing one of her books or using these links, you will be supporting Synova’s work on cold cases and will ensure her ability to continue to give a voice to the victim’s family. Thank you.

We lose 22 Veterans a day to suicide. Help save a vet today!

Helping our vets beat PTSD – each purchase pairs Vets with service dogs

You can forget about boring coffee when you try Bones Coffee!

The post The Haunting Disappearance of Randy Brosius appeared first on Synova Ink.