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Subscribe to RSSWhen Coast Guardsman Russell Matthews’ car was found by police abandoned at a Kaena Point parking lot in a remote area of the Hawaiian island of Oahu, the fire department as well as the Coast Guard launched an all-out search.
U.S. Coast Guard
Petty Officer First Class Russell Matthews, 36.
Searchers scoured the north and south shores of the point. The fire department sent out helicopters and the Coast Guard deployed MH-65 Dolphin helicopters of its own. The Coast Guard Cutter Galveston Island, an HC-130 airplane and even a Navy P3 Orion aircraft joined in the effort for the missing 36-year-old man. Some 1,200 square miles of the tropical island and its surrounding waters were searched.
Police told a local TV station the aviation survival technician, a petty officer first class from Air Station Barbers Point, was emotionally distraught.
On Sunday, the 15-year Coast Guard veteran and father of two showed up at his wife’s Oahu home after nearly four months away. But nobody was home.
Matthews was incoherent and taken to a hospital for observation, Honolulu police said Tuesday, according to The Associated Press. And, as it turns out, Matthews was being investigated for illegal marijuana use at the time of his disappearance, Coast Guard spokesman Chief Warrant Officer Gene Maestas told the Honolulu Star Advertiser.
Military investigators will talk to him when he gets out of the hospital.
Maestas has said the Coast Guard doesn't know where Matthews had been or what he'd been doing since his wife reported him missing Oct. 9, the AP reported. Coast Guard investigators confirmed his identity after he called his command from Castle Medical Center in the Honolulu suburb of Kailua.
He's now being evaluated at Tripler Army Medical Center in Honolulu, according to the AP.
Maestas told the Advertiser that illegal drug use is an offense that could result in a Coast Guard member’s discharge.
Contacted by NBC News on Wednesday, Honolulu police spokesman Capt. Andrew Lum said he could only confirm that Matthews was “no longer a missing person.”
A person in the public affairs office for the Coast Guard in Honolulu said a request by NBC News for information would be forwarded to a superior officer.
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Hawaii is an easy place to be lost. No weather difficulties, plenty to eat, and lots of drugs.
He was incoherant when he was found. That single fact might tell the story.
Fair enough, but he also could have had a psychotic break. Let's find out what's wrong with the man. He may have been on a boat trip with someone.
But his glaucoma is doing great.
Peridot, clearly he was mugged. His chin was stolen along with his personal effects. He's been earning money as a Beeker stand-in for the Muppet Follies on Ice.
dude's got issues...wish him the best...
Now that there is an opening for a Coast Guard member in Hawaii can I have it? Oh good, there is one of my three required job applications for unemployment this week.
Flylowguy, Another thing is the cost of this extensive search. I times of tight budgets, people who do dumb stuff like this should be billed for the costs of looking for him. Maybe that would deter others from pulling stunts like this!
how convenient that he decides to abandon his car at Kaena point... of course they are going to blame the locals... then he decides to turn up 4 months later. no wonder the locals dont want these idiots in their turf.
He just wanted to pretend that he was in the movie, The Beach. I'm sure that he is just high as a kite. Once the drugs wear off, he will be just fine. Well mentally anyways... Now he will have to answer to his wife! Yikes!
Not enough info yet, but one question pops up. If Matthews was incoherent how did he find the house?
Too much pot!!! lol
It's a miracle!
Where in the world was he hiding?
With Teo's fictional girlfriend.
They were having lunch with Waldo and Carmen Sandiego.
I have never had pot good enought to send me on a 4 month bender. That would be legendary.
behind a dental floss bush...with a pair of heavy duty zircon encrusted tweezers in his hand...yippee kiya...
oh he`s moving to Montana soon
The island of O'ahu is large enough, and does have it's fair share of wooded wild areas...one who is knowledgeable of the region and some skills can live in the island interior indefinitely...
...by himself he wouldn't need no boss, but he'd be raisin his lonely dental floss...
Who really cares where he was hiding all this time. He should be dismissed from the Coast Guard immediately! If he was being investigated, he should have stood up and took it like a man. Apparently, he isn't CG material.
#2-4
Oh please, anywhere but Montana! It's a beautiful place and has enough homegrown problem people, we don't need any more! How about New York, Thule, Greenland or someplace like that? However, the psychotic break is definitely a possibility. Hold judgement until we hear what the problem is. In the meantime, prayers for his family. They don't deserve this.
yes send him here to ny, he can be the next governor. our current one has no concept of reality either. i think he smoked some of matthews pot.
maggie @ 2.8
2.3 and 2.4 are from an old Frank Zappa song.
where ever it was it was a damn good spot!!!! they never found him, he came home!
maggie @ 2.8
2.3 and 2.4 are from an old Frank Zappa song.
as is 2.6
Where was this guy hiding? Apparently in plain site. And anyone who is in the Coast Guard and knew where this dude was and did not drop a dime on him, could find themselves treading in very unpleasant waters with the Coast Guard chain of command themselves.
Looks like he went on a bender... I would say bill him but he didnt call law enforcement to investigate his disappearance. With facing charges for possible drug use, he probably wanted to fly the coupe but not to easy when on an island with everyone looking for him.
BOE thats funny about the Beeker Stand=In... spot on!
Hmmmm, hard to comment on this one. Either his disappearing was "convenient" or coincidence along with his drug use. OR, someone took him so he wouldn't rat them out and decided better of it and let him go ... who knows right now; crazier things happen. The truth will come out.
You could be right 4 months is about right to grow , harvest and cure a crop of cannabis .
No shock that the guy could not be found in Hawaii: a few decades ago a lot of people could not find the Japanese Navy not too many miles from Oahu
Can you say "unmanageable?"
Say it............I can't even spell it without spellchecker. Got any easier words?
Dog. D-O-G
If he thought he was distraught being investigated for pot use, he'll wish that's all he had to worry about now after being AWOL and facing the charges about to be brought against him. And what about the ordeal he put his family thru?
Right?! The Investigation will Continue... He won't be able to Leave Military Custody... Now throw Desertion on top of that? He's definitely going to Court-Marshal, unless he has a Damn Good Alibi. Which it doesn't appear so--- He served for 15 Years so I doubt they will be lenient. "Zero Tolerance" P.S. Incoherent is a Nice way of Saying "Drunk" Oh Well--- I feel bad for his Family as well...
Jen - the term is Court-Martial.
18 degrees where im at.getting lost in hawaii sounds awful good to me.
27 below this morning .
I'd love to get lost in a marijuana patch in Hawii for 4 months . It will be Spring by then .
Let's go!
Can someone explain to me why this is a story. People go missing all over the world, every day. Is it that it's Hawaii? Is it because he's Coast Guard? What makes this story so important?
AZAFVWT - If you're actually a 'vet' then you know why this is news. After an exhaustive search and he suddenly 'turns up' 4 months later? The fact the US govt. spent at least 100's of thousands of dollars for the search is only the beginning. He's in some deep you-know-what. All for smoking some weed (time to legalize NOW!).
makemyday2day-1929924: two things; 1) Why did u read it then and
2) Why even comment?
makemyday2day-how does legalizing weed make this guy's totally stupid decision better? Oh, cause you think he would not lose his job. Wrong...again.
That's what I want to know. Why is this jackasses disappearance act "newsworthy"? He's some kind of irresponsible dummy who "checked-out" for a few months. Bigger things are happening hourly . Charge the dumb-ass for the search efforts!!!!!!
It's because the coast guard searches people on the sea, coast, shore, or close to the beach when people are missing. They could be missing from boating, capsizing, surfing, etc. The coast guard search for days when a person is missing. In this case, this coast guardsman is missing but his job is to search for people that are missing and then he shows up four months later at someone's home.
It is because this jack ass cost us taxpayers big bucks - the search itself was costly in dollars, and if there had been an accident while searching Navy, CG and other personnel could have been killed. People put their lives on the line to save folks - when it is a real emergency and time is of the essence these heroes probably dont mind, but when it is a waste of effort because of frauds than they potentially endanger themselves. And what if someone else had truly been missing, but the resources were already committted to this.
The rank on his collar in the pic does not match his listed rank. He is wearing 2nd Class Crows, but is listed as a 1st Class.
You beat me to it.
Not necessarily a current photo, maybe they didn't have a "face shot" with his then-current rank. Probably going to be a 3rd class after this. Better have a real good story.
Regarding the rank pins on his uniform, it's probably an old picture. As for disappearing then showing up after some time, it happens a lot and it doesn't necessarily mean anything nefarious happened to him. I think that he probably suffered a breakdown. Maybe he has a family history of mental illness. I'm just glad he is safe and is getting help. He needs it.
He is probably going to be an E-1 after this. Then maybe a civilian with a BCD.
It's a conspiracy!!! or just that he did not have any pics with his first class crows.
Ha! I saw that too... I just think it's Funny He didn't even make 1st Class before his 12 Year Mark... Good Conduct or Sh*t Bag Sailor that never got caught til now? LoL
He should be billed for all the search expenses. Mary J never hurts anyone. Ya right. What Pot head a**hole.
First time I heard of someone using pot and going missing for months, happens all the time with alcohol, crack, meth, pain pills, anxiety pills, etc. This story does not make sense. I know smokers who do it sun up to sun down 24/7 and they have never once been incoherent even after smoking an ounce. How much would one have to smoke to become incoherent? Me and some friends have put down a pound in one day, anybody ever smoke more? SHARE!!
how many friends and what type of device?
My bad, I reread, LOL! He disappeared because he has lost all that he worked for because he wanted to smoke some weed, oh well, the @!$%# is illegal and we pay the price for a so called drug. WEED IS NOT DRUGS!! If I didn't get randomed I would smoke but my family comes first. Such a shame we cant enjoy such a fine herb, it does make life a drag now that I think about, LOL!
OH WELL!!
I'm from the gutter so 6 friends all blunts, and a few stragglers throughout the day. We put an ounce in one blunt
big ass blunt! thanks idc,ya had me curious. peace.
If I go missing, PLEASE do not look for me. The Govt decided to look for him w/o HIS permission, he owes nothing.
" Me and some friends have put down a pound in one day, anybody ever smoke more? SHARE!!" - Idon'tcare
Can't help you there. What part of "illegal" do you not understand?
I was in high school. Cannot smoke now because it is "illegal." And I get randomed at work. It is also illegal to speed, commit sodomy, adultery, but people break laws all day every day and night for the sodomy part, HAHA! Does that make a weed smoker any less than you? Just curious. I have not heard of someone high off weed going home and beating his wife/girlfriend due to personality change. If this act is committed while high off weed they can't say they don't remember like you can off alcohol, meth, etc. The short term memory thing I believe is a myth. I believe it has more to do with the way the mind is working while high. While high you can read a book or try to learn something new, unless your mind is totally clear while doing these things, you wont remember because in your mind there is more thinking going on and you may be way off subject, in the mind, than what you are physically trying to accomplish. This is why many say it expands the mind to a different level of thinking. The only reason I am not scared to share my smoking stories is because I do not smoke anymore, haven't in years. But if legal, I wouldn't mind relaxing on some worry free weekends or evenings and blowing down. But hey, in modern America, when can we have worry free moments to have a care free spirit? Maybe if these mass murderers were prescribed medicinal marijuana instead of RX pills then maybe there would still be some complete families and some little kids with futures.
Going "missing" isn't a crime in the civilian world. If you're 18+, you are free to walk away from your life anytime you feel like it, unless you're doing it to commit fraud or flee prosecution. If someone else wants to launch a $100K search, that's their decision, not yours.
But, I'll concede that this guy is different because he is active military (going AWOL is an offense) and he knew that he was being investigated by the service.
We need to try and convict this man as soon as possible before the truth leaks out or it will make our verdict look bad
REALLY? Fake your death over some WEED? REALLY?
Eazy - My thoughts exactly!!!
Sounds like his experiments too him beyond marijuana.
Looks like to me he was upset over the pot investigation and simply took off. Likely got homesick and decided to come home. No big story here.
Reminds me of Sideshow Bob after a buzz cut...
Another small story where they obviously have little information, nor really draw any conclusions. Except perhaps to see what kind of conclusions readers will draw who don't have enough information to draw any firm conclusions but lots of questions. Dang these stories! Is this the best going on in the world right now? How about a category labeled weird or little infor news?
Then why did you take the time to read it AND post a worthless comment???
This was like a follow up to let people know he turned up. It was a newsworthy story when he came up missing and had a big following. So now, will they continue to track this story so we know what happen or will it be swept under the table?
Thanks Terry for the polite informative post. I understood the reason for the story. I always find it fascinating how people respond to articles. Then others respond to those comments.Perhaps it is akin to people watching.I hope to learn something new each day about the world and life.Though humor doesn't come through the computer very well, my comment was meant tongue in cheek and not to put the story down at all. As you point out in your last question, will it be tracked or swept under the rug?
Doesn't matter to me. I'm just glad he's alive.
UA for 4 months,, can you say brig?? I knew you could
Yet another I can't be blamed for having over for din-din. Bwahaha!
what dose maybe using marijuana have to do with it.
How is that legalization of drugs working out?
Talk about a high that just keeps giving. Four months without a word. This guy should easily fit the description of "no longer Coast Guard, serving time, and paying back for SAR costs". What a jerk.
He was looking for his chin...
Total loser. Fifteen year career thrown away just to dabble with some damned weed?! And him supposed to be a father, husband, provide his pasrt to the family unit!? Home boy ain't aggona get no twenty year retirement pension now, folks, nor does he deserve to get it. Four months UA?? Sadly, the services are so screwed up, they'll have to give him four (4) full retrocative months of back pay as they lock him up. Seriously, as a father myself, think of this 'family man' as a father, and you cannot help but judge him a loser. What a great provider and role model. Jeesh!
wutdat...
But most "daddies" aren't in the military where career-wise a lot more is at stake. Gary Cyr is talking about not doing @!$%# that will destroy your family financially and emotionally. And it appears to be weed that set this whole thing in motion. I.E., if he wouldn't have dabbled there, he wouldn't be in the hell he's in now, nor would his family have to be in it as well. You need to get perspective.
being investigated, go missing long enough to get it out of your system, then claim your crazy so you can be discharged and draw diability. Good angle.
Seriously wtf does weed have to do with it? Oh let me guess.. The weed made him run away on his family? Lol. Idiots..