The disappearance of former child star Joseph “Joe” Pichler, who went missing in early 2006 never to be seen again
"Joseph Pichler was a rising child actor who starred in Varsity Blues, Beethoven's 3rd and 4th, and Touched by an Angel, but he vanished without a trace in January 2006.
According to the Charley Project, the friends who last saw him stated he was in good spirits while he was with them. His car, a silver 2005 Toyota Corolla, was found on January 9, 2006, at the intersection of Wheaton Way and Sheridan Road. He was reported as officially missing by his family on January 16.
According to his family's statements to the media at the time, the last outgoing call on Pichler's cell phone was placed at 4:08 a.m., on January 5, to a friend who had said that he had been visiting with Pichler earlier in the day. According to the Associated Press, Pichler's family stated that a note found within the car expressed a wish to be a "stronger brother" and asked that personal effects of Pichler's be given to a younger brother, but the family did not characterize this finding as a suicide note.
Robbie Davis, the lead detective on the case, told the Associated Press that "There's a good indication that it might have been a suicide, but we don't know that," adding that there was no reason to suspect foul play. His body has never been found.”