Yuba County Five: What most likely happened
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- Опубликовано: 28 авг 2024
- Yuba County Five: What most likely happened
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What do you think happened?
Mathias looks very guilty. Means motive opportunity and being violently bonkers
I think he threatened them and eventually lead to their deaths 18:39
Your research skills are fucking lacking...especially concerning this case. You made ZERO mention of Shone constantly changing his story...what he was reported saying at a local diner...AND his run in with 2 of the boys 2years prior to this. This was a very weak attempt. Try again.
1. They didn't look in the nearby shed for food because they never considered the possibility that the shed might contain food.
2. They wouldn't have known how to use the propane tanks.
3. They didn't know how to start a fire.
4. They walked up a snowy hill instead of downhill to safety because uphill was 'new' and downhill was 'old'.
I do not believe that Mathias was directly involved in the boys' deaths, but the possibility exists that he continued hiking without them, leaving them to die.
Nailed it. Blaming Matthias is irresponsible when the likely scenario is they didn’t know what today so they made a bunch of mistakes.
They got lost and kept driving up that hill until they reached the Volkswagen and stopped behind it. The man in the VW became angry because of the car lights behind him and he didn’t want to move….he was stuck and not feeling well. VW man gets out of his car and goes over to the five men and starts yelling at them….that’s why the one window was open in the back. The only person who could communicate was sitting in the back seat. VW man’s yelling scared the crap out of them. He orders them to go walk up the road and find help for him. Once they left that vehicle they were too scared to go back because of VW man. Their fate was sealed from that moment on.
I have suffered from (BPD) or borderline personality disorder, OCD, and Social Anxiety for 40yrs now. I have trouble making new friends and being in large crowds. People need to understand that we aren't "CRAZY". We are disabled just like anyone with a physical aliment. Often times it's worse than physical because the brain is a complex thing. In terms of what it can do to screw with you. Especially, when it's off and misfiring in people with my types of problems. Thankfully, medication and therapy has helped me out tremendously. To the point i live a relatively "normal" life. But people need to be more sensitive and not so quick to judge folks with my types of issues or worse. They have NO comprehension what it's like to live with the daily struggles with one half of your brain behaving normally. And the other have constantly in protective mode where it doesn't trust anyone or anything. It's a constant balancing act that requires medication and therapy to balance out evenly or as close to that as possible. My heart goes out to these gentlemen. I've ALWAYS been intrigued by this case and what exactly happened. I don't anyone of them within that group killed each other. I think it was something far more bizarre and mysterious. Which is honestly why it hasn't been solved yet. Or it has been but the government/officials won't release what actually took place. That's my two cents on the whole ordeal. Whatever the case i hope they are resting peacefully. Because it was a terrible tragedy for them and the families.
Why they headed into the forest has been reasonably explained. When the police began their mountain search, it was a few days after the incident and there had been a lot of snow in the meantime. It was later realized that a plow had made a since covered up path to the ranger trailer (which was rarely used but not abandoned, iirc). So, they had followed a fresh path. This also explains how they made it so far as they were not trudging through deep snow. It does not explain why they didn't walk down the hill to the lodge they had just passed, as the man in the VW eventually did.
Or why they were there in the first place.
@@everygamersdream72 Good point!
It also doesn't explain why they walked into the woods in the first place. Why did they abandon the car if it was not stuck? The man that supposedly had the heart attack was not consistent and is not reliable. It seems more than likely he got stuck and they couldn't get past him and he got out to confront them and became enraged which scared them off. This is plausible considering what we know about who these men were and what they were like probably already being lost and scared because it's dark and they're in an unfamiliar circumstance following the lead of somebody who's likely angry and panicking already only to then be confronted by someone who's even angrier and not knowing what else to do but just run away. I don't know for sure that's what happened obviously but to me that makes the most sense. I would also explain why they didn't go to the lodge. They didn't want the really angry man who's confronting them in the dark to find them. Realistically most of these men should not have been on an outing unsupervised by some responsible adult. I don't think they should have all been together without at the very least some adult present who was not eligible to play on the special Olympics basketball team as all of these men were. I don't mean that last part condescendingly either. I think it's a real statement and it's a reality that these men were capable of being on at basketball team like that. They needed more supervision than they had. This is what I would expect a bunch of kids in this situation to do in a panic or when confronted perhaps. I don't think it's all that mysterious. I think it's just sad.
Doesn’t explain much. There were only 4 sets of tracks. But there were 5 men in the group. I think they went looking for Gary after he had an episode due to his psychosis. And the men met their demise in a brutal way.
@@JimmysJohn33 As there was a big snowfall before the discovery of the car, I don't think there were any tracks. If there were tracks it wouldn't have taken months to find them.
I definitely think foul play occured here, there's too many inconsistencies and pieces that don't add up. However, I'm of the belief that Matthias was just as much of a victim as his friends where that night and there was another party involved. People who blame Gary right away are simply doing so based on the fact he was mentally ill and also information that has been subject to questioning. Unless hard evidence of his involvement is revealed, I choose to stick to the theory that all five were met with foul play, whatever the motive was.
Edit: Its not impossible that Joseph Shones could have had some involvement. Whether directly or indirectly. Just because someone is known as a town drunk and a liar doesn't make them a murderer, although it is suspicious he changed his story so many times. Maybe he did this because he was genuinely hiding something or he was giving the police the run around. Unfortunately we'll never know if he was involved or not, but there has to be someone (or a group of people out there) who are still alive who have to know something. I also have to criticise law enforcement here because I feel like had they acted on the missing person reports sooner, at least a couple of the boys could have been saved. Such a tragedy.
There is plenty of blame and shame on law enforcement and the rangers in this case. From numerous reports and documentaries on this case it easy to see the police dropped the ball. When the missing person report was made, the police at first wrote it off to it was just boys having fun. Then when the parents told the police about their learning disabilities, the police assumed that they got lost and died. I had read that the rangers knew about the trailers but felt because of the boys disabilites, they felt, they never would have made it that far and never searched the trailers. Ted and someone else survived for months and if the trailers had been searched, they at least would have been saved. One of the fathers supposedly lost faith in law enforcement, went there and sadly found his son's body.
Joseph did have a heart attack and Gary is a red herring imo
Plus if Gary was the murder. Why did he care for his friend and cover him in blankets after he died. And Gary clearly was trying to find help for him and his friends . What I think happened after Ted's death is that Gary went to find people to rescue him but at the end I think he went mad dropped his blankets and flashlight and ran off. Sadly I think he didn't survive his attempt however
Another youtube channel did this story and reported there may have been some sort of confrontation at the basket ball game with locals and that the locals may have chased the boys on the road. Another theory was the woman and child were at the game and the boys offered to give her a ride and that that is what got the one of the "locals" angry/jealous. This would explain the truck that the guy saw and the group of people. The locals may have caught up to the boys, took the girl and the child and chased the boys off on foot.
Missing enigmas channel?
@@NickyBlue99 Bedtime Stories and there was another one I cant think of its name.
but the lack of damage to the underside of Madruga's car suggests he (or someone) drove up there slowly and carefully, which doesn't suggest a chase or pursuit of any kind.
I love Bedtime Stories.
@@stevenmcghee6649 I think there was a pursuit up to that point and when they slowed down the "unknown" people may have caught up to them. Ive been on roads like that and you can still move along with out damage. Regardless them slowing down would account for how the others caught up to them and got them stopped. Madruga didnt want to damage his car and didnt think about the danger they were in.
Ted was spotted “hunting” with a man in the woods despite his fear of firearms. This was the last time he was seen alive. I’d make a connection between the man he was hunting with, and the people in the red pickup truck, and I believe that the woman was not holding a baby, but rather, a weapon. This explains why they all left after Schoen called out for help, the people in the truck were kidnapping the boys. I’d believe that they all escaped and died in the cold eventually. This can also explain why they went up the mountain in the first place. Perhaps the boys tried to escape the truck by going up the mountain? The car was also left unlocked with a window rolled down, which is something Jack would’ve never done, as he took care of his car too well to do so, even if it was stuck in the snow.
Either way, foul play was definitely involved, and I don’t think Gary was the culprit.
Ted Weiher never hold a firearm in his whole life. This misinterpretation comes from a bogus report from the case.
I've always been suspicious of Joseph Schoens' story. Apart from his reason for being up there at that time of night being proven to be hogwash, there's also his actions after suffering a heart attack. I've had one of these and know how impossible it was to walk 5 feet let alone the 5 miles he says he did (and in the middle of winter on a snow-covered dirt road) No matter how 'mild' an attack it was, he didn't make that walk alone. He also had a reputation for being very dodgy. I don't know how he's involved but I suspect he's somehow at the centre of all this.
You can stop being suspicious. Joseph Schons was my dad. He had a couple of heart attacks before he got heart bypass surgery. He was a big guy, 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds. He didn't have a reputation for being "dodgy." He was married to the same woman for 50 years until he died at age 84. He had five kids. He owned a number of real estate properties in Butte County. He had no criminal record, and the worst that can be said about him is that he was a recovering alcoholic.
His car got stuck in the snow. He had a mild heart attack while trying to get it out. He had nothing to do with the Yuba 5 other than a random encounter in the middle of the night. Don't try to read something sinister into it. Your suspicions have nothing to do with reality.
No offense but it seems like your just spouting info of the web, also from every other account that talked about him he was dodgy. He was a drunk and a pathological liar according to multiple different accounts and I don’t see why they would all lie about that. He changed his story about 3 times when explaining what he saw, now that doesn’t mean he has any part in this, he could have just been hungover or something but it’s not something to just disregard. I personally don’t think he has anything to with it either, but it’s not your place to tell others what to think because of what you think happened just because you’re dad didn’t seem like that guy. You weren’t there either so all you can do is speculate as well. I understand it probably sucks having your dad attached to this tragic story, but I don’t think that makes it ok to %100 plead his innocence when he did some suspicious things. Again I’m not trying to be a dick or anything i just think you shouldn’t belittle his theory just because you don’t like the idea of it. Have a good day :)
@@jasoncreel2275 It's irritating to read comments from guys like you playing "amateur detective" who arrogantly think they know more about my dad than I do. You claim that I'm "spouting info off the web," but nothing I wrote came from the web. It's my personal knowledge. Everything you think you know about the Yuba 5 case comes from the web and second-hand sources. I've read lots of stupid comments on the internet, and some of the stupidest ones come from guys playing amateur detective. You don't strike me as exceptionally intelligent, but go ahead and speculate if it makes you happy, Jason.
Mild heart attacks can go away by calming yourself, doing shallow breaths and rubbing your shoulder. I get them at least twice a year. It freaks me out.
@@Dime_time333 I'd one massive one and two smaller ones within 3 weeks of each other. Enough to tell me all I need to know about the likelihood and veracity of Schoens 'story'. You're lucky you haven't had to undergo a 9 hour op like me where they ask 'have you made a will?' an hour beforehand!. Don't take your attacks lightly. It might be indicative of something worse. I trust you seek medical advice?
It just seems they were not able to get out of an unfortunate situation. They knew to take shelter and survive on rations but not prepared for the harsh condition. The sick man probably had nothing to do with anything other then breaking down where he did. I do not see a huge conspiracy every time a odd situation arises. Accident by misadventure actually does happen.
We'll when nothing else makes any sense. most people will go with the most rational theory. You got to look at all theories or scenarios. but doesn't mean we all just have to really choose one. you can remain skeptical.. especially if there's not any proof!
I tend to think something could be up with that guy because of his background. and if he wasn't taking his meds right. It doesn't look good for him. but then again, I don't know? and I would hate to be wrong about it.
@@MM-ig1ivBut it was said (by his family) he was taking his meds loyally until he disappeared.
There is a possibility that due to their various mental health issues, that what we would assume to be logical, has no say on their behavior. They could be of the thinking that the belongings in the trailer isn’t there’s and therefore they shouldn’t use anything 12:53 , for fear of getting in trouble.
I have to say I absolutely agree and think this often when I watch videos like this where the family speaks in absolutes “they would never do this or that”. As well as us trying to say what is rational based on what we think is normal behavior or what we think we would do.
And I do think that it is possible they felt they weren’t supposed to be there and broke in out of desperation but weren’t willing to “steal”. The fact remains we have no idea why they did what they did or what they were thinking. People make mistakes every day and sometimes it results in really poor outcomes.
@@NurseKayP What?? The only people you should really listen to is the family as the missing men were very particular people and they knew all of their habits. They weren’t unpredictable just because of their disabilities, they were actually more predictable.
Oddly, although Weiher had broken into the trailer, he hadn’t opened a locker in the shed that contained enough food to feed all five men for more than a year. Nor had he used the matches, fuel, or propane tank located in another shed to keep the trailer warm. It seemed that he’d simply spent months waiting to die.
Remember. These kids were mentally delayed. He might’ve been told/thought he wasn’t supposed to be there and didn’t wanna touch someone else’s things. It’s hard to try and understand what someone with a mental deficit would be thinking in a stressful situation.
There’s a theory that he was being taken care of by Gary in the trailer and weihers family had said he was scared of fire so Gary probably didn’t want him to be scared
maybe he eventually wanted to.. it's hard to think about what all he witnessed and went through. like if he's witnessed his friends dying and had to leave them? and I'm sure he was in some excruciating pain as well.
I think this tragic story is simply a tale of a group of vulnerable young men getting lost in the woods. I can imagine each person's panic feeding in to their choices, and experience.
But then you wonder why they were there in the first place. Apparently there were landmarks that would've been obvious to them that they were not going towards home, and a large sign when you enter into Plumas Natl Park. That seems to rule out getting lost on the way home.I'm new to this story, and I just hate it for the boys and their families.
So what most likely happened? you never even said, that’s bull shark man. I didn’t need a case recap - everyone knows this case
He said that what they thought happened, was the comment summary at the end. That they basically agree with the commentor that that's exactly what happened.
I'd never heard it [Australia]
Only the terminally online know this case. It’s not at all widely known offline unless you’re in Yuba county maybe
@@WithDiameter It was big news and widely known.
I guess this was simply caused by a dr*g/alcohol-driven jealousy drama....#NoAliens involved for sure! 🤔
My favourite channel covering one of my favourite cases. Life is content.
😃
But there were reports of the group being seen in Brownsville, some 30 miles from the place where their car was found. They looked confused and scared and were trying to place a phone call, something that Huett dreaded. Apparently a red pickup truck was around, just like in the woods according to Schons. I think it could have been more than the demented Matthias, or perhaps a horrific coincidence: an incident with locals in Chico over the basketball game that led them to be chased, followed or coerced. The world is full of bad people, and many times they go unnoticed; also bullying people with disabilities was not uncommon at the time.
Brownsville sighting is bogus.
So they went back into the woods to starve and die after checking out a gas station 30 miles away 2 days later when they were already being searched for?
They were called boys even though they were in their 20s in mid 30s. 2:00 then at
4:18 you called them children. 😆
Mentally they were boys.
If you use common sense that is when he referred to them as “children” due the fact that they were peoples children. So your comment is just ignorant
@@tessaducek5601 No not really only 2 of them were formally diagnosed with intellectual/learning disabilities, the others just had symptoms of autism
I've always wondered how the coroner is able to make a definitive conclusion that the cause of death was hypothermia when only having someone's skeleton to work with?
I mean yeah i know the remains were found outside in the snow, etc. so it would SEEM the logical conclusion to make would be hypothermia, but, how can other certain possibilities just be dismissed?
Strangulation does not always cause the hyoid bone to break, so i wouldn't rule out strangulation as the cause. I also wouldn't rule out death by stabbing. Again, if all you have is a skeleton to work with, there's absolutely no way to tell if the person may have been stabbed in the atomach or other fatal areas, while the blade never coming in contact with bone.
There's obviously many others possible ways, but i just wanted to provide a couple examples.
If anyone has more knowledge than me pertaining to my hypothermia question, i would genuinely love to hear it and learn more about it 😊
Exactly. There are obviously things they can exclude, but they can't say with 100% certainty the boys didn't run into violence of some kind. They can only assume it was hypothermia due to the circumstances surrounding their disappearance. There would be no evidence from their remains pointing towards hypothermia after that long + animal activity.
"What Most Likely Happened..." finally comes in just the very last min. of the video lol
So we're supposed to believe two vehicles (Schons' bug and the Yuba boys' Montego) are coincidentally abandoned on the same night, on the same mountain road, 30 feet apart and have nothing to do with one another?
Plus the back window was rolled down on the boy's car as though someone spoke to them. Unless the person sitting in the back stuck his head out to see how the wheels were gripping on the snow. I think the guy Joe in the other stranded car had something to do with it too
I’ve always found the story of the witness a bit odd.
What about that gold watch they found that did not belong to any of the victims ? ...
How do we really know it didnt belong to any of the young men? Just because the family didn’t recognize it doesn’t mean it is fact. Rarely, do we know every single tiny detail of someone’s life even our family members and friends.
There was different situation with a watch where a man was wrongfully convicted of a murder. One of the damning pieces of evidence was a watch the suspects sister had that supposedly belong to the victim. The family identified as their daughters but it was not.
a gold watch is something that these men would have likely not been able to afford unless it was a gift from their parents @@NurseKayP
It’s basically what would happen if five 12-yr old boys got lost. They didn’t know what to do. They tried to help people as they got tired or hurt, but they were just playing adult.
Gary mathias jack madruga and bill sterling are much more capable of rational thinking than you think they are tbh
@@camizonks488agreed, Magruda could drive a car, that’s a complex task and he’d had army training. Mathias had no learning disabilities and had been successfully medicated without incident for a couple of years, it would take a week or two for his medication to cease to work, so I don’t believe he suddenly had an episode. They were forced or chased up that mountain road, they didn’t get lost on a route they’d taken many times before. Scheons knows more than he let on I reckon.
Fast becoming my favorite channel.
Well done!!
We appreciate your dedication and consistency. We will always support you and this channel.
Thank you Sophia, really appreciate it!
Ive a strong sensation that all the boys made it to the trailer but only Weiher was left there and the others left looking for help, Madruga trying to make it back to where his car had been left. Weiher's mental state likely precluded looking after himself and the others would not have lasted long in the cold forest if they didn't have food
Regarding Madruga and Stering both men was slow but not disabled, so their chances of surviving that night should be good. It highly possible that half-way up the mountain or even upon reaching the ranger station they turn back because Madruga car was left at the bottom and the station was unmanned meaning they had go for help. On the trek back down both men already tired and frost bitten perish from the cold. On Jackie I don't believe he made it to the station, as he would be in a bad condition to leave. Many other programs claim he did reach the station yet there is no evidence he reach the station that night. There is no way he would leave his best buddy Weiher's side. He likely dies on the trek to the station. At this stage Mathias was helping Weiher and couldn't help him as well. Upon reaching the station and putting Weiher to bed, he went back for Jackie but by then it was late, and he was dead, or it was snowing, and his body was cover in snow. He likely suffering the effects of the cold, forcing him to return back to the station.
Fact with evidence to support that three of them made it to the trailer, which was Mathia, Weiher and Jackie. It was Mathia who break into the trailer, search the other trailers and obtain the food. On Madruga and Stering, its hard to say if they reach the trailer or not, there is no evidence to prove it otherwise. If they did, surely, they would take the service winter coats inside the trailer, but no coats were found on their remains. On Mathia I don't believe he stay long with the others inside the trailer, he could have taken the blankets and flash-light to go looking for Madruga and Stering, but return back to the trailer or went searching for help. Once he was gone, he left Weiher and Jackie there who both in poor state and unable to care for themselves. Likely Jackie the last to die, after Weiher pass, he went for help and perished. Were there other bunks in the trailer? If so, wouldn't be evidence they were use, if was 3 bunks which show signs of been used, this proves how many men was there at the time.
I don't understand why you use the image of a trash dump in every video. How do old couches and pallets dumped somewhere pertain to the topic?
They got lost and were not able to handle the situation they were in. Simple as that.
They had varying degrees of mental challenges. Their issues were managed under normal circumstances.
This is not a normal circumstance. It's not a stretch to consider that in the face of stress-snow outside, their car getting stuck, and them being lost-they simply started making poorer and poorer decisions. Starting a fire to keep warm, eating the provided rations, and staying indoors are all things that we would have done, but the people asking these questions do not have the same mental challenges as the five men.
Nah
I just never understood why they didn’t walk back down the road…
That's what I thought when I heard about this the first time.
Maybe they were scarred of soemthing
They were mentally challenged
They didn't go down hill because what ever chased them up there was downhill.
Regarding the trailer Mathias and Weiher stay in, for what 8-13 week? Was there a toilet there, like did Mathias help Weiher help to the bathroom as there is no way Weiher be able to do this himself with the condition he was in? Did he soil and wet himself? What about drinking, was there water or cups or bottles use for this. If Mathias stay in the trailer were did, he sleeps during this time. Why Mathia didn't fix the broken window as at least put something over it to keep the cold out. The number of ration packs open, was this enough to feed 2 men for 8-13 weeks? Was there a first aid kit there? I do notice many programs go on about the paperbacks and newspapers in the trailer, but there was a open fireplace which I do doubt since the trailer was heated by gas. Mathias would be sane and fit and able in the first 2 weeks, surely, he would done more than open ration packs. Unless he was a less bad condition than Weiher. Surely, he would able search the camp in those 2 weeks, finding more resources to help him and Weiher. Some of these programs claim without evidence that Jack Huett was at once stage was in the trailer. Yet many other programs claim he never reach it. I do feel much is left out what happened in that trailer. The more we learnt, more we at least find out the fates of Marthia and Weiher
How they went to the bathroom doesn’t matter at all. It’s believed they ate snow for hydration. No, not that much rations were eaten. Most were unopened. The trailer was rarely used but not abandoned, so there probably was a first aid kit. It’s believed Mathias didn’t stay in there long. They didn’t have coats or gloves, and the only sign showing either of them went outside was a trail of blankets near the trailer. Jackie Huett could have been at the trailer, could have not been
it does matter as these factors can help understand what happened inside the trailer as Weiher was in there at least 8-13 weeks and someone would had to aid him during this time or he would been dead within 1-2 weeks. On Huett been in the trailer, the fact is he would never leave Weiher, I doubt it he was there and there is no evidence to state he was there but plenty of evidence that Mathias was. Because the blankets had been placed over Weiher's head hen he die does suggest Mathias was there with him for 8 weeks.
Good points.
I know it's just a small thing, but the back seat full of wrappers, a half eaten candy bar, and the back window rolled down really puzzles me. Who would mess up the car owner's cherished car with wrappers everywhere? that's so bad mannered. And who sat in the back to roll the window down. Was it rolled down to check the wheel spin in the snow, or was it rolled down to speak to someone. And seeing as Joe Shon was only feet away it makes sense he may have spoken to the boys. I don't know why the wrappers and window stick in my head, but they do
A ton of the stuff here about Gary is NOT in the new Netflix episode on the case.
“I haven’t eaten a carb since 2006.”
Its the fucking catalina wine mixer! Lmao he actually does look just like him
@@urge3v hahaha im happy someone got it
Glad someone said this lol
Vodka is carbs
This case shows how information in police files can go a long way to resolving questions and narrowing scenarios in unsolved cases. I'm glad the police allowed journalists to review these files in 2019, I wish this would happen in more cases.
I love this channel. But Windigoon did a much better job covering this story
So has Missing Enigma and Lore Lodge, definitely worth a view for anyone wanting more detail on this case.
Hypothermia can make you lose it too hallucinate and also I always thought about a some sort of shared delusion they could of all had is possible. So many theory’s, it’s just impossible to explain
Shones needn't have imagined the encounter. The people shying away from him could easily have been scrounging for loot in the abandoned car & didn't want his attention. This would explain the double set of headlights Shones saw at first.
Who knows in that area! Those mountain ranges along with Coastal mountains were known for having serial killers in the 70’s & 80’s
My parents live a few minutes away from Chico
In my opinion, whatever happened to instigate the event, Gary wasn’t the “cause” of it. Idk what happened, but I think Gary made it to the cabin, and then went to get help. Personal experience tells me that Gary probably went along with the group, until a day or two passed and they made it to the cabin. Just because Gary was schizophrenic, doesn’t mean he was a crazy psycho just kept at bay by daily pills. Schizophrenics tend to be too smart for their own good. Even if he was part of the instigating event, I think that he did what he could and went to find help
The only unanswered question is why they ended up there? Got lost or were forced to go there by a delusional person? The rest is known, they died from hypothermia. Look, certain people don't have the instinct of survival and they don't even know how to open a can or light up a fire unless you show them how to do it. And you are dealing here with mentally handicapped people who got lost, confused and helpless in the wilderness, as simple as that. Poor men
According to the documentary I watched, their families are all interviewed, and one of the boys was really familiar with the route they would've taken there and back. I can't remember if it was for sure Madruga, but I believe so. The families didn't seem to think they got lost and said they wouldn't have ended up out there on their own accord.
@akaginny7516 Maybe you're right but for families of victims, it is always hard to come to terms with something unpleasant, e.g. some victims of suicides. They will always refuse to accept that their loved one committed suicide and instead, they will believe that a third party was involved. There are many examples of it.
Regards
I still say they were chased. Emotions run high at games. Especially when 'respectable' boyfriends go to pick up girlfriends at stores only to find the same 'boys' from the game. Then proceeded to chase them up the mountain. No fire was lit cause they hid.
Shones seems shady, as likely involved in the incident as anyone.
Gary Mathias was a typical intelligent guy - he had schizophrenia, maybe he was experiencing delusion and was able to convince the group they were in danger and / or were being followed and they needed to hide or something.
Simple but this might have been what really happened. 👍
@@ahonnaga8854 it’s rather sad though how people pointed the finger at him as if he did something with nefarious intent, ya know. Whole situation is sad ugh !
I personally don’t think so, Bill Sterling and Jack Madruga were known to stand their ground with their opinions and wouldn’t go along with the group, and if they didn’t like something they’d speak up. In fact, Bill Sterling would get violent if someone was in his way. And Ted Weiher would also fight if he needed to. But Madrugas family also said if he was threatened with a weapon or so, he’d comply
@@camizonks488 ya it’s so hard to pontificate about what actually happened. That could very well be the case ! It’s terribly sad .
Hang on. Three of the 5 were ex servicemen 😮
No, only 2
@@markwolfshohl6562 No, four of them.
The military will often take in low functioning men at certain times, but they usually get washed out or discharged after a single hitch. They may have served but that didn’t make them survival experts/rangers by any streatch.
During Viet Nam Robert McNamara started a program to induct thousands of low functioning men as soliders. The experiment quickly failed because most of these recruits had to have another solider babysit them 24/7.
@@NickyBlue99 you are wrong
@@NickyBlue99 visit “ drew beeson” Yuba city five
We already know exactly what happened to them. So what is this "most likely happened" garbage!?!?
Well... what happened to then then?
We don't know why.
No you don't... nobody does.
I think every little oddity can be easily explained: they were not smart men.
Sadly this is true
Agreed; Occam’s razor. Although the other guy that broke down on that same road saying that he was “unwell” and “may have hallucinated” seems a bit odd. Do most people have a hard time distinguishing reality from hallucinations? I can’t help but wonder if he was at least partially involved in this situation going from bad to deadly but who the hell knows. Also I work in the corporate world… the vast majority of my co-workers don’t have diagnosed mental disabilities yet I guarantee most of them would not survive this scenario so either way I wouldn’t be surprised
If this is the only video you've seen on this then you're very much mistaken I think their mental and capabilities definitely played a part in this but if you don't think there was something fishy in this case then you don't know this case that's facts
Clearly.
The missing enigma does an incredible deep dive.
Just saw the Netflix special, it makes you think.
They said there was only 4 sets of tracks going into the woods, meaning Gary could of been left out of the group ?
I don't remember the heart attack guy mentioned in the documentary nor the pickup truck. Hearing new facts here.
Given the Era and early 70s if foul play was at work, little shit towns around them would have angry locals that look down on mentally challenged and could of lynched them.
I had a uncle that used to drink in different towns with a buddy of his when he was younger and the locals of that towns bars would notice them right away, he said one bar in a town they told them to finish their drinks and get the fuck out. Just to give you an idea of his time frame close to the 70s when he was around the age of one of these guys in a different area.
Loved the narration. Subscribed. Great content.
I think shone is 100% at fault, if not by accident, perhaps purposely. He might have just been yelling gibberish at them when he had a “heart attack “ or he was just drunk and angry.
I'm of the opinion that Shones was more than likely involved as well, whether as you say by accident or purposefully. He was sketchy from the very get go, constantly changing his story. Whatever secrets he had he took to the grave when he died.
It's been said by the boys' families that despite their intellectual disabilities the five were abled bodied and were able to handle themselves in a physical situation (take Madruga and Mathias for example, both with army experience. Personally I would not want to be someone to get on their bad side for that reason)
We may never know if these unfortunate events were foul play or not, but something tells me there's something more sinister going on here
Due to their Biblical names - I think they collectively had a religious experience which led them up a mountain to seek out the burning bush. They were confused when they found said bush to he frozen and unable to light. God then struck them down for lack of effort in the face of a divine mission.
Was thinking they left car because of some car failure, but after this vid the car appears functional. The netflix documentary did not tell jack sh...about the cars condition.
Most likely taking the woman to “her place” in the mountain and they were “robbed” by the chicks “man/friends”. The boys probably tried to run away and that’s where their bodies fell. Or they stayed at the cabin after dropping the chick off and their friend had a schizophrenic episode and attacked them.
I agree the men had intellectual disabilities. No way they would have just driven that far and abandoning the car they were lead to that area.
So how did that one guy's beard grow for 13 weeks if he wasn't dressed for the cold weather and barely ate any food? How long did he live?
Matthias was involved with some shady folks and was killed and allegedly thrown off a near by dam. They were dangling him head-first that's why his boots came off. Then either the same bad folks made the boys go up the mountain or they just went that way to hide from them.
Since Mathias was never actually found, I'm very curious to know where you got this information from.
@@neuralmute a podcast that was recommended in a different RUclips video about this case called "Yuba County Five"
@@neuralmute I think it was missing person enigma
@@neuralmute the other RUclipsr or video that recommended it
Yep. The town bully and his gang of guys made fun of one of the boys who would make "noises" when threatened. Gary defended him, the gang beat him and then threw him off the dam. They then chased the other four men up the mountain.
I want this one to get solved so baddd. This and Asha Degree.
We instantly think of foul play, but occam's razor makes sense
Fun fact: It's also somewhat close to the Zodiac killings, who Gary also happens to look like
Shones was know as the "town drunk" was a known liar...But it's interesting that he was there. none the less. The 2 big questions with this case..Why were the boys there ? and why did they abandon the car?
Would love to see David Fincher adapt and direct this movie about the Yuba county FIVE.
The worst people ever to go camping with basically lol
I don't think we're ever go to k know what really happened
just like Dyatlov's pass. I think we're just missing a key moment or perhaps many! that makes this all just a broken record of theories. all of them having some mental issues makes it all the even more difficult.
Endless foul play, disappearances etc etc to this very day, in the N.West. I do not, will ever, never, never hike or campout in or on those trails out there. Espec. California and Nevada. Few Rangers and they dont chk or seem to care who is in their Parks. They take more care on Eastern trails..
#SafeParksNow. Govt better do something!
Actually true
Finally a video that isn't 40+ minutes long
This randomly came to my mind... What if there really was a woman and a baby? Think about it, she could of been driving her own vehicle and had the boys follow her up into the mountains. Claiming that she maybe needed help or something, since the boys were known to be helpful and caring souls. It would explain the older man in his car, seeing two sets of headlights. But like he said, due to the medical attack he was suffering he could of been seeing things that weren't there.
Though it wouldn't fully explain why the five boys had gotten separated or why Gary was never found. A theory of mine is, four of the boys had gotten lost and the woman promised to take Gary to get help from the police. Or if she led him astray from the police and into another sinister trap.
Something just tells me that Gary didn't do it, and there is another story we haven't heard yet.
The witness who claimed to see a woman was known to be drunk and previously before getting stuck on the mountain was seen having beers. He also said he saw baby clothes in Madrugas car. He told the family of the missing men that he was just on the mountain “horsing around” after already changing his story twice. And also Gary Mathias hated police
Gary was a maniac. Guilty
The dude that they never found was schizophrenic prob went ham
4 sets of footprints and 4 bodies found on the way, of course. Gary's kidnapped by somebody, and the rest 4 drived and chased to save him, but the car can't move any more and they tried to find the shelter. that maybe the story
I don't think that the boys drove that far out of their way and became lost on their own. I think they were coerced to go there and forced to abandon the car. By who/whom we'll likely never know. As far as Shones..He was known as alcoholic and liar by people in the area by people who knew him. He never told a consistent story about what happened that night
I'm puzzled by Shones being out driving so late in challenging weather conditions. Considering the circumstances, shouldn't he have a fairly accurate understanding of the skiing conditions? Moreover, wouldn't it have been possible for him to phone and ask about the conditions?
Furthermore, the connection between Debbie Lynn Reese and the Yuba 5 is unclear to me. I'm unsure of her relevance to the case and how she might be linked to the missing individuals. If there's no direct connection, it raises questions about why she would receive those mysterious phone calls related to the Yuba County Five.
Schons didn’t ski, he was an old fat drunk man. His reasons for being on the mountain changed 3 or so time. Debbie Lynn Reese was a liar. People have found 2 Debbie Lynn Reeses in the area and both of them denied being the woman who claimed to have been called. The only connection between her and the men was the fact she was local. She said she got the call stating they’re all dead not long after they disappeared even though Ted Weiher didn’t die til around March.
I think one of them had a mental episode
What kind of car was he driving
Missing Enigma did a two part series on this. I do not think Shones was trustworthy. That said, Occam's Razor is probably the answer. All of your work whether in this area or others is terrific!
Did you read Tony Wrights book? Personally I don’t believe Occams razor since it makes no sense as to why they’d continue going up the mountain when they got out of their car instead of going back down the road to the mountain lodge
@@camizonks488 No, I did not read that book. You may be right. A truly puzzling and tragic case. Thanks for the note. Mac
So it’s a bad idea to let 5 mentally disabled people hang out on their own
Don't be racist ❤
@@MsCwebb where was i being racist?
@@Dana__black I don't know man, sometimes I just throw that accusation out there for the hell of it.
@@MsCwebb damn can’t even argue against that logic, you antisemite.
There are degrees to disabilities. This is why some people with disabilities live on their own, drive, marry, have children, etc. Two were to watch over the others, because they were higher functioning. They are also adults, so they do not have to agree to be babysat either.
I think Shone (heart attack guy) knew more than he let on. I DO think it was an accidental occurrence, though. Five men, all of whom have mental disabilities, there is no way we can guess what ideas or thoughts of how to get out of that situation that may have come up with. They could have come up with ideas that we couldn't even fathom and they could be so random as to not make any sense at all.
"Heart attack guy" is my dad, Joseph Schons, although he's been dead for 20 years. His last name was misspelled as "Shones" in the video, although the narrator correctly pronounced his name as "Shones." His car got stuck in the snow, he had a heart attack while trying to get it unstuck, and I'm amazed that he was able to survive. He was a tough old guy. He had a couple of heart attacks before he got heart bypass surgery. He got Alzheimers and died at age 84.
@@jonstone9741Thanks 4 sharing. RIP...
He was also my Dad and he told me he did it
@@JackEBoy-el4hsplz don't make up stuff
@@SPRINKES88 Alright for anyone unsure, im joking lol
That’s not “Affectionately” ….it’s just plain old “Patronising”
An autopsy can tell if a skeleton died of hypothermia?
No, it can't
Hol' up, this sounds exactly like the narrator voice from that history channel. No way this is text-to-speech, it's way too good 😯
This is AI quality research. Terrible. So many details wrong, don’t viewfarm missing folks and get half the details wrong. Poor work
How were any of them allowed a drivers license?
Only two of them had driver's licences (I was able to find this out from further research, it's often left out of videos) Mathias and Madruga were considered the most mentally competent of the group, whereas Weiher, Stirling and Hewett weren't able to have them due to their disabilities. There's plenty of sources online that have much more information.
You think everyone with a disability is incapable of driving???😮 Uhhhhhh. 🤦🏻♀️
Going between “men” and “children” was confusing
Different contexts
It's Adam Scott obviously
Yes, I’ve always suspected Matthias. Those photos are quite telling, from normal looking young man to someone who looks very unhinged and sinister. His criminal activities bare this out.
A lot of the locals apparently believe it was Matthias’ sister’s ex boyfriend who is still alive and living there
@@WWJimbo ...wow ...there's another twist to this already bizarre incident ...
@@michaelkoszowski3716 If true, we should have more information once he passes away and people don’t have to fear him
@@WWJimbo yeah , hopefully they can solve it then . Another bizarre case was "the Springfield three" ....they just vanished without a trace .
ya'all need to get some more b-roll. showing that same picture of trashed furniture and map of india/se asia is getting oooooold
Did someone give them acid or mushroom "for broadening their mind" at the game they were last seen publicly?and they just went crazy after that and went on a triply ride to discover nature and then maybe the animals attaked them ??!! 🤔🤔🤔
Reminds me of Dyatlov expedition mystery
They would have stayed together.
I really think it was Gary because of them being way the hell out in Bumfuck California instead of near their home. Madruga drove them up there and unless they made wild and continuous wrong turns (possible certainly but this was way beyond that likelihood) they were guided to this location.
I find it hard to believe you would allow your mentally disabled adult-child to go off unsupervised with other mentally challenged individuals. They couldn't use common sense to find a heat source but they could manage operating a vehicle?! Its amazing nothing serious happened before this incident
This is something that I thought originally myself when first discovering this case but, this is where this comes in:
You can't exactly tell your adult sons "No" when it comes to going out, whatever etc. All of them were between the ages of 32-24, and it seems like none of their parents or relatives had any sort of legal stuff going on regarding them. In the eyes of the law they were grown ups, who could do what they wanted. Furthermore it has been said that Madruga and Mathias were the most mentally competent/able, hence Madruga being able to drive a car. They likely were able to keep their eyes on the other three as a result of this and so the others' parents must have trusted them all to be out there. I believe in another source it was said they'd made this journey plenty of times before and had always come back, so as a parent you wouldn't really think much of it if they decided to have a night out in the neighbouring city. You'd just assume they'd go off, have their fun and come back. This was either a result of an unfortunate accident or foul play.
@@meganowens2843 All those details are in the many videos about this case. I don't need a review. Either me or my husband are chaperoning, one of the other parents or some type of ARMHS worker. No ma'am we not doing that.
There are all kinds of adults with disabilities that drive, live alone, marry, raise children, etc. Each person is different. Two were way more capable than the others, and in charge. They are adults and going to a basketball game. They did that often.
@@chas1981 And yet, here we are speculating about "what most likely happened" with this unsolved mystery.
I'm sorry, but this comment comes off as pretty ignorant. There are many adults with disabilities that have jobs, drive, live on their own etc. A very close friend of our family is intellectually disabled. He has a job, he drives, has his own apartment, goes on dates. Lives a normal life for the most part. I think parents want their children to be able to have as normal/happy lives as possible, and these families were no different. I'm sure they thought there was safety in numbers, the boys weren't doing anything that could bring them harm, and that everything would be fine.
This. Version. Gives. A. Bit. More. Info. Than. Earlier. One. Gary. Does. Seem. To. Be. The .one. That. Stands. Out. As. Of. Most. Likely. Offender. They. All. Could. Have. Become. Into. Contact. With. Another. Man. And. The. Woman. And. Ended. Up. Gary. Joining. With. Last. Two. And. Murdering. Chasing. Others. To. Their. Death. Just. Idea. From. An. Aus. Know. How. Ones. Not. Stable. Can. Erupt. So. Quickly.
Wow maybe a connection
Sir, your narration is excellent, this story is known by me, but like Paul Harvey, your page two extra information about Mathias makes one think, thank you!!!🙏😢⚖️🤔❣️
You can clearly see the somewhat rapid progression of Gary M’s Illness. The colour photo of him shows a completely normal young man. Just look at those two black and white pictures of him, what a stark difference. He looks like a wild animal, he also looks very capable of extreme violence if provoked. I think Gary M did it. I think he had the intellect and a plan to get rid of the others. It’s likely the “Boys” annoyed Gary easily because of their, probably child like behaviour. He deliberately got them lost, except he wasn’t! He lured them to their demise, probably leading them miles into the freezing woods towards the cabin. He could have murdered two of them in the woods, the others he left, knowing they wouldn’t be able to look after themselves. Only a possibility, but we’ll probably never know! I think the name “Madruga” is actually pronounced Madrooger!
I think you need to understand the timing of those pictures as well. They are very likely out of order/date. Gary was on stable medication for (around) two years prior to this incident. ALL family members say the medication transformed him. So he just, what? Went off his meds but held it together long enough to attend a basketball game and then lose it on the way home? Was he some evil genius to plan such a trip only to kill four boys that he considered friends? When he was looking forward to the next day's basketball game just like the other boys? This is a tragic accident or a third party. If Gary was ever in that cabin, he went for help and died in the elements. If he didn't make it to the cabin, he was absolutely a victim of foul play and those boys were collateral damage to someone else. (That the shoes were for sure Gary's is a misnomer. Probable, but other podcasts argue the shoes were common every day sneakers similar to what the other boys wore as well.)
Nah.
@@chas1981 Why? Why not? Not much of an answer that really, is it! At least I’ve come up with a possible idea and have got people discussing it. So what’s your great theory and wonderful possible explanation consist of: “Nah”. What a brilliant and well thought out addition to the conversation that is. Where do you get all these fantastic ideas from???
@@pikachu6031You’re wrong.
@@creepcrawlart5660 I’m wrong because????
Ok so what happened then? Lol extremely vague on the details? An accident ok cool. But it's crazy how they stayed at this cabin for how long? Months? Come on. You got lazy on this outcome.
Something or someone forced them boys away from that car. that's really all that makes any sense. why walk "or flee I'm not sure?" into the woods away from safety and shelter unless it was unsafe!? they had to be forced or scared I'm thinking. now, for going up there in the first place I have no clue? Unless they were going on some kind of thrill adventure ride going up the mountain as a scare in the dark? but things got worse and went downhill and something happened and scared them out of the car!? who knows? I think all of them basically having mental disabilities makes almost anything possible. none of them but Gary is going to think rational. and of course, he might have had an episode if he wasn't taking his meds? A lot does point to Gary. and with his background. but... I guess we'll really never know? I'd hate to be wrong about that.
He WAS taking his meds religiously for 2 years up until he vanished.
It doesn't explain how or why the other four seemed to die of exposure despite supposedly being forced to act out of their own self interest and safety.
I thunk Matthias started it all by sharing psychedelic drugs with the others and acted in a way that caused them to accidently kill him in an attempt to subdue him as a threat.
Matthias being the only person familiar with the legal system and not mentally disabled, was in a twist of fate not able to tell them that killing him would not have gotten them in much trouble under the circumstances he put them in.
After accidentally killing Matthias, the boys buried him deep in the forest or put him somewhere he was never found.
The boys knew only that murderers back then were executed and they panicked. By the time they were dying and their survival overrode their fear of punishment it was too late for them to turn back and make it, being starved and frostbitten.
The man they didn't help points to them fearing being found themselves and the situation I just explained is all I can think of that might lead child like men to act so strangely risking their lives and leaving a man to die who was begging for help.
If Matthias gave them drugs it would tie it together and explain their irrational behavior being that even being slow wouldn't fully explain their total irrationality.
I just watched another show that said it's Bigfoot.
It's aBigfoot.
Ar it again.
Bigfoot very likely.
I wouldn't rule it out! not in this very very strange world. I've seen a couple UFO's before and once with my neighbor. they indeed do exist! but I've never seen a bigfoot. But seeing what I did see... i can't rule it out. and they say UFOs are somehow linked to bigfoot?
But if I saw bigfoot.. my ass would definitely stay in the car!!? that's where safety and shelter is! once you get outside.. your now out there with him.
Jockstapas
I think they got high or some other drugs
Why were they allowed to go on their own unsupervised is my question