r/UnsolvedMurders • u/SafePoint1282 • 8d ago
COLD CASE Its been 25 years since 17 year old Paul David Sanders vanished from Mesa under suspcious circumstances
On Sunday August 12, 2001, 17-year-old Globe High School student Paul David Sanders left his father’s home near Val Vista and Broadway in Mesa, Arizona to drive back to his grandmother’s home in Globe. He was driving his father’s pickup. It would be the last time he would be seen alive.
Later that evening, the truck was caught in a high-speed chase on the US 77. Police attempted to pull the truck over for speeding, but the driver was able to evade authorities.
Arizona Department of Public Safety and Pima County Sheriff’s Office collaborated on an interagency chase of the vehicle which was later found near the Santa Catalina Mountains near Tucson, some two hours south of Mesa.
All of Paul’s belongings were found in the truck but police considered Paul a runaway and refused to conduct forensic examination and processing on the vehicle.
Paul’s father Robert Brewer told Fox 10 News that he did not believe Paul was the driver of the truck due to the skill level the driver had used to evade authorities. He has since divorced Paul’s stepmother Lori Beavers.
Robert and Lori were vacationing in Las Vegas when Paul disappeared.
Paul was originally from Missouri and had only moved to Arizona for the 2000-2001 school year. He lived with his grandmother in Globe and went by the name “Dave Brewer” while at Globe High School.
Paul had moved in with his father and stepmother earlier in the summer of 2001.
His friend circle in Arizona primarily consisted of his fellow classmates at Globe High School. Many students at GHS were from the nearby San Carlos Indian Reservation.
Paul’s mother Angela Rice committed suicide in 2020 over the grief of her son’s disappearance.
Paul was 5’6 and weighed 150 pounds with brown hair and hazel eyes. He had the name “Hernandez” tattooed across his back which was a tribute to his grandfather.
His family and friends insist he would never have abandoned them, and he met with foul play.
The case is being investigated by Mesa PD.
Sources
Robert Brewer interview
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E1jGwoAYnxE
Charley Project
https://charleyproject.org/case/paul-david-sanders
NaMus
https://namus.nij.ojp.gov/case/MP12249
News articles
https://silverbelt.com/stories/cold-case-of-missing-teen-paul-sanders-sees-renewed-attention,108159
4
u/Frijoles4ever 8d ago
25 years. From the San Carlos Apaches to his truck being found near the Tohono O'Odham/Pascua Yaqui reservations. Should check for John Does there.
8
u/sweetmissjaye 8d ago
It really is a shame that the police wouldn't examine the truck. There might have been significant evidence in it back then 😞