Family Positive In Identification Of Missing American Brett Bean

[webfact]

Family positive in identification of missing American Brett Bean

Phuket Gazette

PHUKET: -- Based on CCTV footage the family of missing American Brett Bean have identified the man using Brett’s ATM card on November 23 as Brett.

“My husband, my daughter and I all thought that the video on the 23rd was Brett. None of us are sure of the other videos. We are actively working on those videos, so that we can be sure,” Brett’s mother, Lynne Bean, told the Phuket Gazette.

Mrs Bean led a flier posting campaign around the island yesterday in hopes that someone might recognize Brett’s face and come forward with information concerning his whereabouts.

Immediately after arriving on the island earlier this month, Mrs Bean offered a 50,000-baht reward for finding her son.

“At the end of the day I honestly cannot be totally positive [about the other videos], but do see ‘something’,” Brett’s father, Wayne Bean told the Gazette.

Brett was last seen by a neighbor in Karon, on Phuket’s southwest coast, on November 25.

Mr Bean had booked a seat on board flight FD3012, which was scheduled to depart Phuket at 9:30pm on November 27 and arrive at Don Mueang Airport in Bangkok later that night.

He had a flight the next morning to Los Angeles.

“I don’t even want to speculate why he is still in Thailand if indeed he is still there. He has everything going for him over here and turning his back on it makes absolutely no sense at all,” Mr Bean told the Gazette.

Anyone with information that may help locate Brett Bean is urged to contact the US Embassy Bangkok at + 66-2-205-4049

Source: http://www.phuketgaz...Bean-19717.html

-- Phuket Gazette 2012-12-15

[stevenl]

First they were not able to identify him, now they are? I have the feeling that this identification is for a big part based on the hope it was him in stead of really recognising him.

[Skytrain2hell]

Hopefully this is just a case of, "Mom! Stop bugging meeee!"

[waza]

Sounds very sinister, hopefully it will turn out well.

[NamKangMan]

Have the banks cancel all of his ATM cards. If it is him, he will soon make contact when he needs cash. If it's not him, at least the crook pulling his money out will be unable to do so.

This should have been done as soon as the family saw the CCTV video.

[Happee]

Sounds very sinister, hopefully it will turn out well.

I'm not sure how sinister it sounds. It's odd that his family can't identify him in the videos - I know CCTV can be blurry, but your own son who has been missing?

I get the feeling he's had enough of his folks ... in the news article his old man claims he has everything going for him back at home, maybe he's had enough for everything being in place and nicely routine and wants to break free in Thailand - Wouldn't be the first

[briboy]

I thaught I read (yesterday?) that in the cctv, that whoever was using the card in the 711 and atm kept their helmet on, I think Mummy and Daddy need to realise that their little boy wants to live HIS OWN LIFE........ maybe????

[Jimi007]

I thaught I read (yesterday?) that in the cctv, that whoever was using the card in the 711 and atm kept their helmet on, I think Mummy and Daddy need to realise that their little boy wants to live HIS OWN LIFE........ maybe????

I hope you are right, but it his disappearance sounds strange. He has a fun job as a ski instructor at Aspen, he has a bungalow that he's had in Kata for years, so why hide from his parents? His parents are going through a pain that no parent should have to go through...

[renrut salohcin]

Have the banks cancel all of his ATM cards. If it is him, he will soon make contact when he needs cash. If it's not him, at least the crook pulling his money out will be unable to do so.

This should have been done as soon as the family saw the CCTV video.

If it is him why should his bank cards be cancelled? What justification would the bank have for doing this? He's a grown man who has done nothing wrong and should be allowed to live his life as he wants. If nothing untoward has happened to him all that has happened is he didn't get on a flight by his own choosing and I do hope that is all that has happened. If it isn't him using the card then obviously further enquiries need to be made.

[renrut salohcin]

I thaught I read (yesterday?) that in the cctv, that whoever was using the card in the 711 and atm kept their helmet on, I think Mummy and Daddy need to realise that their little boy wants to live HIS OWN LIFE........ maybe????

I hope you are right, but it his disappearance sounds strange. He has a fun job as a ski instructor at Aspen, he has a bungalow that he's had in Kata for years, so why hide from his parents? His parents are going through a pain that no parent should have to go through...

Maybe it's a personal thing that has happened between him and his parents, nothing to do with any of us. And unless you've been in that particular situation yourself, you should reserve judgement on it.

[NamKangMan]

Have the banks cancel all of his ATM cards. If it is him, he will soon make contact when he needs cash. If it's not him, at least the crook pulling his money out will be unable to do so.

This should have been done as soon as the family saw the CCTV video.

If it is him why should his bank cards be cancelled? What justification would the bank have for doing this? He's a grown man who has done nothing wrong and should be allowed to live his life as he wants. If nothing untoward has happened to him all that has happened is he didn't get on a flight by his own choosing and I do hope that is all that has happened. If it isn't him using the card then obviously further enquiries need to be made.

His parents have initiated a police investigation. The police are now investigating a missing person case. That's enough justification for the banks to cancel the ATM cards at the request of police.

Yes, he is a grown man who has done nothing wrong, but what about the possibility something wrong has been done to him????

There is someone presenting themself to an ATM with a missing person's ATM card, and has knowledge of the missing person's PIN number. There are also other reasons why the case should be taken seriously. Eg. missed flight and failed to start new job.

Your post is full of "if it is him" and "If it isn't him" and "If nothing untoward has happened." The whole idea of a police investigation is a search for the facts, and to deterimine criminality. The idea is to answer all of the "if" questions.

The goal of a missing person investigation is to locate the person. Having the bank cancel his cards will go a long way to locating him, should it be him using the ATM card, and he has not met with foul play.

Hopefully, he is fine, and when located, he will not be arrested, as he has committed no offence. The police with inform his parents he is alive and well and the case is closed.

Sounds like you would like the police to sit back and do nothing. So here's a question for you. After how long the man has been missing, do you think the case should be taken seriously and action taken, like cancelling ATM cards?

He's been missing for 3 weeks now. If he came in on a 30 day tourist visa exemption stamp, next week he will be an overstay. Flagging his passport on the immigration data base is another thing the police should do. The case could be solved next week, should he do a visa run.

There are many things that can be done to locate him, I've only named a few, but they are all better than doing nothing in the hope he just rings home one day after realising he's ben a naughty boy, at the age of 43.

[Jimi007]

I thaught I read (yesterday?) that in the cctv, that whoever was using the card in the 711 and atm kept their helmet on, I think Mummy and Daddy need to realise that their little boy wants to live HIS OWN LIFE........ maybe????

I hope you are right, but it his disappearance sounds strange. He has a fun job as a ski instructor at Aspen, he has a bungalow that he's had in Kata for years, so why hide from his parents? His parents are going through a pain that no parent should have to go through...

Maybe it's a personal thing that has happened between him and his parents, nothing to do with any of us. And unless you've been in that particular situation yourself, you should reserve judgement on it.

Maybe. But according to what I have read about this case, his parents knew he had a flight to the Los Angeles that he missed. They also know he missed his flight from Phuket to Bangkok. If he didn't want them to know about his scheduled flights, they wouldn't have. So, your comment doesn't hold much logic in my opinion.

[grumpyoldman]

Well, if we are going to get in the speculation game, I say the conditions of the roads here at times, sure can send a motorbike rider aflyin, to destinations where people may not find you for a couple weeks..........

Lets hope thats not the case and he's in Koh Kradan with a sweetie and doesn't want to be bothered.

[Rionoir]

If there was an embarrassing family issue/fallout, maybe mom and dad didn't want to share that with the whole world for everyone to discuss on online forums. As a frequent commenter on other people's business via online forums, I'm pretty sure I'd do the same as them in that situation.

[NomadJoe]

Agree with some of the posters above. In nearly all of these kinds of cases it's the missing person that does not want to be found. Hopefully that is the case here.

[briboy]

By all means, the parents are allowed to be worried and have at long last have reported him missing, I hope I am wrong, ( believe it or not I am one bloke that has been wrong before and no dought will be again, unlike some others) just a gut feelin that he wants to be left alone..................... If he is on TV and logs in on another comp, lets hope he lets Mum and Dad know he is OK.............

[NamKangMan]

By all means, the parents are allowed to be worried and have at long last have reported him missing, I hope I am wrong, ( believe it or not I am one bloke that has been wrong before and no dought will be again, unlike some others) just a gut feelin that he wants to be left alone..................... If he is on TV and logs in on another comp, lets hope he lets Mum and Dad know he is OK.............

Obviously, his parents are very worried about him. Some, including me, immediately think that a misadventure, Eg. drowning has occurred, or he may have been the victim of foul play, Eg. murder.

It's also possible that he is suicidal, for whatever reasons, and it is important to locate him before he attempts self harm or suicide.

Perhaps the police could also check with airlines to see if he has booked another flight. This may give some indication he will be resuming his normal lifestyle.

As mentioned in a previous post, next week, he could become an overstay, so, he will also be a fugitive from Thai immigration.

[noob7]

"that the video on the 23rd was Brett"

Ok, so they 'know' (think), that he was ok, 2 day's before the flight to BKK

Did anyone check all these ATM-records? Are they taken from the same areas/Atm's and/or amount range, than his normal usage, from the time, the family had contact to him?

Old habits aren't easy to break!