Five years after he seemingly vanished without a trace, police and his family are still hoping for answers in the disappearance of Michael Feist.
Feist disappeared on Jan. 11, 2006 and there is virtually no indication as to what might have happened to him.
On that night he worked a shift at Roger’s Towing in Riel Park, but failed to show up the next day for a second shift, leaving only a note with no explanation.
His car, a 1986 maroon Honda hatchback, was found on Jan. 13, 2006 on Highway 43, two kilometres east of Cherhill, near Mayerthorpe.
Cpl. Laurel Kading with the St. Albert RCMP said the case is very confusing and leaves many unanswered questions.
“It is one of those where we would really like to fill in the blanks. We would really like to know what was going on.”
She said the vehicle was left at the side of the road in no apparent distress. It was locked up and was, as far as police can tell, in fully functioning condition when it was abandoned.
“There are no signs at the scene of foul play or suspicious activity. It is just a vehicle left and now he has not been able to be accounted for for five years,” she said. “Normally if you stop your vehicle and lock it up, you wouldn’t take those precautions if you didn’t intend to come back.”
She also said that while the police don’t have any specific information that suggests foul play, there are signs that something is amiss.
“His family has had no contact with him, no indication that he was OK and it tends to make you think that he would have contacted them if he could.”
Kading said the police have pleaded for tips in the case several times, but so far there has not been a lot of information coming forward on the disappearance.
“Over the years some tips have come in but there has not been anything tangible that would help us determine what happened.”
She said the police are looking for more than simply anyone who might have seen him around the time of his disappearance.
“We are not just looking for anyone who saw him around the Cherhill area. It is really let’s re-create what happened with this gentleman before he went missing.”
She said having a timeline and a better understanding of what might have been going on with him before his disappearance would help police in the investigation.
“We need to re-create the timeframe before that to sort of look at what were their intentions, what were their plans and what were their interactions with any people.”
She said anyone who might have seen him, heard about him or heard from him since his disappearance would also be useful.
“Even if it seems trivial to someone, we need the tip so we can follow it through and hopefully get some answers for the family.
“We have a family that has questions and they need answers.”
Feist is as a Caucasian male, five-foot-nine, weighing about 180 pounds. He has short brown hair and blue eyes.
He was last seen wearing a mid-length tan jacket and blue jeans and black ankle boots. He may have been wearing a toque and was carrying a large black duffel bag.
Anyone with any information is asked to call Crime Stoppers or 1-800-222-8477 or the St. Albert RCMP at 780-458-7700.
