Justin Burkhart

YOUNG MAN FOUND DEAD AND CALLED A SUICIDE

FROM FOOTPRINTS AT THE RIVERS EDGE :

On Saturday, August 1, 2009, 28-year old Justin Burkhart got off work at 9 pm and spent the night drinking and dancing with friends at the Underground, a nightclub on Northeast Third Street in Bend, Oregon. The group stayed until the bar’s 2 a.m. closing, then Burkhart invited friends back to his new apartment to have a glass of wine. He had just moved in two days before.

The group drank on the front porch of Burkhart's apartment complex in downtown Bend with other tenants of the complex until around 3:30 a.m., when two of his friends, who were brothers, left to walk the two female party guests back to their car a few blocks away. As the brothers were leaving, Burkhart said he was going to the Pita Pit to get something to eat. The friends told Burkhart that the restaurant had closed for the night, but he headed there anyway.

He only had his wallet and his keys with him.

A witness saw Burkhart walking near a footbridge next to Drake Park. It was the last time he was seen.

Eloisa Chavez, Burkhart's mother, and Teri DuFresne, a private investigator working on the case, believe Burkhart may have headed to the 7-Eleven on Galveston Avenue, about a half- mile's walk from his apartment, after finding the Pita Pit closed. DuFresne said employees of the 7-Eleven did not recall seeing Burkhart that night.

When Burkhart missed appointments with friends over the weekend and then didn't show up for work on Monday, he was reported missing.

A detailed article on Justin Burkhart appeared in the Bend Bulletin on 11/1/09 and on AMW.com.

Recovery

On June 7, 2010, Justin Burkhart’s body was found in the Deschutes River by a Bend city employee, just below the Newport Bridge. The body was dressed in pants, shoes and a shirt and Burkhart's identification was found on the body.

An autopsy determined he had drowned, and there were no signs of foul play.

The case was forwarded to the district attorney's office for review.

About Justin Burkhart

Eloisa Chavez, Burkhart’s mother, hired a private investigator to look into her son’s case. The investigator found no evidence to suggest that anyone wanted to harm Burkhart. He was known to be jovial, had a vibrant personality, was well liked, and had no known enemies.

Burkhart had some previous run-ins with the law for drug offenses, but after a 2-year stint in federal prison on a cocaine charge, it all seemed to be behind him. When he was released in 2008, he enrolled in Central Oregon Community College, and made the dean's list for the fall 2008 term.

In late 2008, he started working at Allyson's Kitchen in the Old Mill District, and started dating Rachelle Templin, his fiancée at the time of his disappearance.

“I was with him almost every day for a year," Templin, wrote in an e-mail to the Bend Bulletin," and I can honestly say that drugs were not part of his life. He was at work, school, or home with me for the majority of that time. He was doing great things, and trying to be the best man he could be.” (Bend Bulletin, 11/1/09).

He was doing great things, and trying to be the best man he could be.” - Burkhart's fiancee

In the days leading up to his disappearance, Burkhart was stressed because his fiancee was moving to Alaska to take a teaching job. Just two days before his disappearance, he had tried to persuade her to go get married at the courthouse, but she said turned him down. The couple had previously decided to put the wedding on hold so her income would not disqualify Burkhart from receiving grants to pay for school.

But while he was a bit down about these developments, there was no sign that he was depressed. In fact, he had purchased a plane ticket to visit Templin in Alaska in early September, and was planning to move there in November. He was even considering trading in the tickets for a plane trip to Hawaii, where he might meet Templin in September and marry her. His co-worker Serena Searcy also said Burkhart was an “open book” who would have likely told her if he was feeling threatened by anyone or if he were seriously depressed.

A Celebration of Life was held at the Riverbend Community Park on July 17, 2009 in Bend.

Facts in This Case:

Last seen: 8/1/09, Bend, OR
Recovered: 06/7/10, Deschutes River
Physical description: Hispanic, 5'8", 155 pounds, dark brown eyes, brown close-cut hair, medium complexion.
Identifying Characteristics: Has a dental retainer. Tattoos include a sleeve on his left arm, "JDB" on right arm, and "Scrap" on his right calf.
Last seen wearing: Green polo shirt, jeans, silver-tone Fossil watch
Investigating Agency: Bend Police (541) 693-6911
Investigative Case #: 09-03-05-261

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This case was sent to me by a fan and family member of Justin's. I did a private chart for her and then did some more work for her and then decided to place this on the blog. This young man was called a suicide without so much as a minute of investigation, although he was found face down in a river. Nobody considered how he got there and like so many other cold cases, this one is dead. His family wants to know the truth, however, and when I saw the charts I came to realize, only after several reviews of the case, that this young man was murdered. He deserves an open investigation.

Since I already ran charts on this case and know that the findings dovetail with the known facts, I start my post here with the last time he was seen, at 3:30 in the morning, when he left his home, seen and acknowledged by friends still there, to get food, as reported above.. Although there are some differences in what I find here, which merit thought and consideration, they do not alter the original findings. So let me show you what I found.

Here you see his marker, the Moon, disposed of by Saturn which is leaving the fourth house for the third. This describes him leaving his home (fourth house) for a trip along the road in his neighborhood (third house). The Moon is conjoined Pluto so he had a head of steam built up and he was not happy. He was angry, in fact. He may have stormed off. This marker along with Pluto in the sixth is the marker for someone who will never be seen alive again. Unfortunately, this came true.

Mercury, the fourth house ruler, is in the third in Virgo (dignity), showing us movement. Virgo is an earth sign so he is on foot, which we know to be true. Mercury in Leo with Leo as a fixed sign we know he is going somewhere he had been before (fixed signs describe habits). As a secondary thought, Leo rules the fifth house, which also describes restaurants and entertainment venues.

There are markers in this chart that I missed in my first analysis. For instance, the seventh house ruler, Saturn, in the third also indicates the presence of another person. His marker, the Moon, in the sixth with Pluto shows that he is still angry and has issues over something. The sixth house may be indicating his desire to find food but it's not a typical indication. But here's the big thing for me: His marker, the Moon, being disposed of by the seventh house marker describes the person he is angry at and this person, shown again by Saturn, seems to be either with him in that area or following him on the path. I am not sure which is the case but this person he is angry with is following him along this path.

Saturn, on the other hand, is disposed of by Mercury in the second, an indicator that money is involved. Mercury is the marker for thieves so perhaps something was stolen. Mercury is also in the last degree of Leo, which means a change in that situation is eminent, moving into Virgo near Saturn. I believe this person stole something from Justin and this started an argument but I have no idea why this thief is now following him.

The second house ruler, the Sun, rising in the first tells me that money was a huge part of this situation and I do not believe Justin was looking for food, I think he was looking for an ATM. Perhaps he was concerned about the balance in his account? Had a card been stolen? The idea that he might have been looking for an ATM is supported by the tenth house ruler (his next location) being Mars in Gemini in the eleventh house. Mars, the tenth house ruler, is again disposed of by Mercury, our marker for the money in this case.

And let me add this. Even though I realize they found Justin's body in that river a year later, there is nothing in the charts for the night he disappeared to indicate he actually died that night. I also do not believe that he returned to that river in the months that followed and then just jumped in. I believe he was murdered.

This chart for early morning shows Justin under his own power (first house ruler in the first) while someone else approaches in a car (seventh house ruler in the ninth). This is along a highway and not the path where the bridge was. He is walking along a highway or interstate. Uranus in Pisces indicates another bridge but an air sign means it's very high and not a low bridge over a brook. This is over a larger waterway. This car is traveling from that direction.

Moon and Pluto in the fifth tell us that Justin may be calmer now but he is still angry. He could still get into a fight.

Mars ruling the tenth in Gemini and in the eleventh house shows us his current location is an area with a crossroads, such as where two roads cross or there are more than one exit from an interstate. Moon ruling the eleventh also implies that he is thinking about a friend and thinking of visiting or calling this person. I do not see that this friend is the person in the approaching vehicle.

This is the chart where I first see Justin being abducted. This person in the car, coming along, is a criminal. A bad person. And then I see Justin in the trunk. His ruler is moved into the twelfth, which has him out of view and not visible. Mercury in the first substantiates the theory that he was put into a vehicle and the third house ruler, Venus, is also the tenth house ruler which shows his current location to be a moving object. Venus in Cancer describes the car as an older dark blue vehicle (Venus disposed of by the Moon in Capricorn) which is in poor shape or what is called a "beater" (Moon conjoined Pluto).

Sun in the twelfth shows Justin hidden from view in a dark place (the trunk most likely) and since the Sun is in dignity then he is still alive.

The seventh house ruler consistently in the eighth house shows criminals and criminal activity. Dangerous people. Uranus disposed of by Neptune in the sixth indicates selling drugs. Mercury opposing Jupiter and Neptune reasserts this idea with Mercury being the "merchant". And since Mercury is in the first, I believe they took Justin for their drug operations. They have people they force to run drugs, to take the risk of being caught instead of being killed. Saturn in the second here shows us how hard it was for Justin to make the money he dreamt of making and it is probable they promised him money and safety in exchange for loyalty. And if he resists, then there is always violence. I do not believe that Justin just went along with this although his money situation was a feature in the argument he'd had and what he was stewing about. This may have made him more vulnerable to these creeps.

I ran the charts forward to see the outcome of this and in this chart, later in the day, Justin is still alive. He is, however, meeting with someone in the woods or on the highway that runs alongside the woods. This is shown by his marker, Venus, in the ninth house with the seventh house marker, Mars. They may have taken him out somewhere and beat him up. Mars in Gemini may indicate more than one man there so that more than one person kicked his butt to get control over him.

This chart, even later in the day, not only shows him still alive but with his abductor (Venus and Mars together in the eighth) discussing the criminal activity (eighth house) and the money (second house). Moon and Pluto in the second indicates a good shakedown to let him know that they expect the money and no "monkey business", as they say. Even if not, they are discussing criminal activity and money so this is why I think they used him in their drug running business.

I do not see Justin dieing that day. When I did the private chart for family I ran the charts ahead to when his body was discovered and saw that he was forced into the river and drowned. I saw his murder at that point. But I have no idea how long they held him in the meantime. I am pretty sure he was drowned many months before he was found because his body was deteriorated when discovered. It wasn't fresh. I am just not sure when this happened or even why. But these people use other people as mules or slaves and then dispose of them when they are done with them. I am positive this is what happened to Justin.