The fate of William Moldt was finally uncovered thanks to the satellite images
If someone was missing for more than two decades, the last place you’d go looking for them is on Google Earth.
But it turns out it might not be a bad idea after all, as some pretty crazy stuff has been seen unfolding on the satellite images over the years.
The handy technology has previously led police to a huge stash of stolen bikes, captured a crash on camera and unearthed what people suspect could be Adolf Hitler’s so-called ‘secret bunker’ in Antarctica.
And incredibly, Google Earth also played a pivotal part in cracking a 22-year cold case into a mysterious disappearance.
Take a look at this:
The family of William Moldt were left devastated when he never returned from a night out at a club in Lantana, Florida, in November 1997 and despite extensive search efforts, no one could work out what had happened to him.
The 40-year-old ‘did not appear intoxicated’ when he left the venue, according to witnesses, and he had contacted his girlfriend at around 9.30pm on the evening of his disappearance informing her he would be home soon.
A report by the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System stated that although William was not a ‘frequent drinker’ he did consume ‘several drinks‘ at the bar that night.
But tragically, he vanished after leaving his friends at around 11pm and was never seen again.
William was reported missing and an investigation was launched by police, but the case eventually went cold as they didn’t have a lot of leads to go off.
That was until a man decided to take a look at his former home on Google Earth and unwittingly made a gruesome discovery while admiring his old neighbourhood.
William Moldt was missing for 22 years before his fate was revealed (National Missing and Unidentified Persons System)
The unnamed resident was having a look at the large pond which sits behind a number of houses in Moon Bay Circle, Wellington, when he spotted something which looked like a car submerged in it.
He got in touch with a pal who still lived in the area, Barry Fay, to explain his strange discovery, who then sent a drone up to confirm their suspicions before contacting police.
When officers arrived to take a closer look on 28 August, 2019, and ended up retrieving a ‘heavily calcified’ white sedan out of the water, which had skeletal remains inside.
It was then confirmed that these belonged to William.
“They had my whole backyard roped off with crime-scene tape,” Barry told the Palm Beach Post.
A report by the Charley Project, an online database of cold cases in the US, said that his vehicle had been ‘plainly visible’ on Google Earth since 2007, but ‘apparently no one had noticed it until 2019’.
His submerged car was spotted in a Florida pond on Google Earth (Google Earth)
In wake of the discovery, Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office told the BBC that they presumed William somehow lost control of his car and drove into the lake.
Cops said there was ‘no evidence of that occurring’ during the initial stages of the investigation, while suggesting that ‘a ‘shift in the water made the car visible’ in 2019.
A spokeswoman for the force, Therese Barbera, said at the time: “You can’t determine what happened that many years ago, what transpired.
“All we know is that he went missing off the face of the Earth, and now he’s been discovered.”
Barry and his mate who made the finding on Google Earth were just as baffled – as they had initially presumed it was ‘just some junked-up old car’ which had been dumped in the pond.
“Never did I believe there would be a 22-year-old dead body,” he added.
The exact circumstances surrounding William’s disappearance still remain a mystery.
Featured Image Credit: Google Earth/National Missing and Unidentified Persons System
