Unsolved Mysteries Recap for What Happened to Josh
Unsolved Mysteries What Happened to Josh? opens with reporters talking about the disappearance of Joshua Guimond, who was a student at St. John’s University. He gone to a party and had not been seen since he left that night. Each reporter talks about his disappearance on the first, fifth and fifteenth anniversaries. It is said that he most likely had some secrets, but everyone just wants him home safe and sound.
On November 8th, 2002, Josh had attended a party. He was a student at St. John’s University in Collegeville, Minnesota. According to his friend Katie Benson, the party took place at one of the dorms. Investigator Andrew Struffert says that Josh arrived around 11:30 that night, but around midnight, people realized that he wasn’t there. Some guests remember a male leaving the party, but could not confirm that it was Josh.
The Beginning
Before college, Josh had been class president and was Katie’s high school sweetheart. He was handsome, smart and athletic, the kind of guy who was popular in school. He was voted Most Likely to Succeed. His friend Dana agrees that everyone thought that he would make it big.
His parents Lisa and Brian also remember him wanting to be a lawyer, while Katie remembers his plans to run for office when he turned 35. He was a man with big plans.
Katie and Josh remained a couple throughout college, going to similar colleges—Katie’s was an all-girls school and Josh’s was an all-male school. His friend Nick was his roommate at the time he disappeared and remembers him as a trustworthy friend.
Brian recalls the last time he saw Josh at a mock trial and how he won several awards.
The Disappearance
On the night of his disappearance, Josh had gone to spend time with other friends. Nick and Katie spent time together, with Nick getting home around 2am. He noticed Josh wasn’t there and just thought he was still out. The next morning, Josh was still gone and had been idle from AIM. By the afternoon, he was really worried and contacted Katie, who also didn’t hear from him since the night before.
At this point, the Dean contacted Lisa, who was devastated to learn her son was missing. Brian was also left in a state of shock.
The police did a search of the apartment but found nothing that indicated he planned on disappearing or taking his own life. His car was also still on campus.
Josh was shown key carding into the apartment where the party as being held and then went back to his own to get more beer. At the party, he seemed to be in a good mood and nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary. He had been drinking, but not enough to seem overly intoxicated. At one point, he left the table, heading toward the door, never to be seen again.
The Investigation Begins
Dogs were able to pick up his scent between both dorms, but then it went cold.
David Unze was an investigative journalist working on the case and reveals that his scent was also on a bridge that was on the path by the dorms. It is believed that he was seen by a couple by the bridge shortly after midnight but when they looked back, he was gone.
Over the next few days, a massive search began to take place. The FBI soon got involved and the case began to get media attention. There was also a possibility that his case was connected to several other disappearances of college students. However, there was no evidence that any of the cases were connected.
Case Goes Cold…and a Possible Connection?
Fall soon turned into winter and like the weather, the search went cold. Everyone was frustrated, especially Katie and Nick, who went so far as to refuse to let anyone else move into Josh’s room.
Josh’s family continued to insist on the search continuing, which led to another dog finding more of Josh’s scent on campus. At this time, there were also rumblings of abuse on campus at the hands of monks who worked and lived there as professors. This led to another theory that they could have been connected to the case. Unfortunately, this didn’t lead to anything.
The dog kept finding Josh’s scent, even in areas that weren’t open to the public. He wasn’t found, but it is believed by Lisa that whomever is involved made it hard for his body to be found.
The two other cases of missing college students were no longer connected, as their bodies were found in bodies of water close to where they disappeared.
The search continued, with bodies of water being searched, but no avail.
New Theories
A new theory emerged when it was learned that Nick and Josh had a fight over Katie, who was no longer dating Josh. Despite there being an attraction, there was no relationship.
Nick’s story also didn’t match up with Katie’s that night, which made him seem more suspicious. He also didn’t help matters when he refused to take a polygraph. Katie believes the focus on Nick took away from them finding Josh.
Another theory emerged that there was an accident that was covered up or that something could have happened at the party.
More suspicion occurs when it is discovered that a washing program was used to erase filed on his computer.
Over the years, the search continued, but nothing led them to Josh. However, in 2008, new technology was able to help them get into the computer. It was discovered that he was using the personals, possibly exploring his sexuality and looking at homosexual and heterosexual pornography. It brought up the theory that he could have met someone that night and led to his disappearance.
There were also several campus incident reports that could have been connected with the case. An orange Pontiac Sunfire was spotted on several occasions, but the driver claimed to have dropped off a friend. The friend was never identified, but authorities want to identify the driver and student.
The car was not connected to the personal ads.
The ads brought up several images of people that authorities would also like to question to see if they knew Josh.
Josh’s loved ones muse on what could have been with Josh and his future.
