8 Famous People Who Went Missing (And Were Never Found)
5. Patrick McDermott
Vanished in 2005
Unlike her character in the '70s film Grease, Olivia Newton-John has managed to avoid drama for the most part. But one haunting mystery will always be attached to her name - the sudden disappearance of her ex-boyfriend Patrick McDermott in 2005.
Newton-John and the US-raised, Korean born cameraman didn’t have the best of relationships. They were the definition of ‘complicated’, breaking up and getting back together constantly over their nine-year relationship. Newton-John has admitted McDermott was ‘one of the most romantic people she ever met’, but they kept their relationship incredibly private, only attending a handful of events together.
McDermott, along with many other celebrities, had deep money issues. He had previously filed for bankruptcy and had received a court order to pay overdue child support to his former wife, actress Yvette Nipar... so is this why he ran from his life?
On the 30 June 2005, McDermott boarded fishing boat ‘the Freedom’, which made a journey from the Los Angeles port area of San Pedro to the island of San Clemente, returning the next day. The fishing trip passed with no incident, but 10 days later, Nipar called the marina trying to track down McDermott, as he didn’t show up for a visitation with their 13-year-old son, Chance.
When she asked around, no one had actually seen McDermott since he’d left for the fishing trip. His tackle box and a bag with his wallet and keys inside were still at ‘the Freedom‘s’ office, and his car was still parked at the marina. Patrick McDermott was then officially reported as a missing person.
What seemed like a tragic accidental drowning soon became much murkier. Investigators found several facts that didn’t add up: Why had no one on a small fishing boat seen McDermott go overboard? Why had his food bill been paid in the last hour of the trip? And why had several fellow fishermen sworn that they’d seen him disembark at San Pedro? Did he fake his own death to escape his money issues? At this point, who knows.
The mystery STILL continues, as numerous private investigators have reported sightings of McDermott living off the coast of Mexico. A man who matches the exact description was spotted in 2017, enjoying a quick bite to eat with his girlfriend, and instantly snapped by paparazzi.
In actual fact, this wasn’t McDermott at all. A Canadian pub owner, Wes Stobbe, was just as shocked as the rest of the world to see his photo plastered all over the cover of magazines and newspapers alike. Tabloids probably should have done some more digging before assuming 12 years later he would just be sat chilling in the sun for the world to see.
So where are you, McDermott?"