Robert Hoagland | |
|---|---|
 Image of Hoagland distributed after his disappearance, showing scar over his left eye. | |
| Born | June 9, 1963 |
| Disappeared | July 28, 2013 (aged 50) Sandy Hook, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Status | Found |
| Body discovered | December 5, 2022 Rock Hill, New York, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation(s) | Chef, property appraiser |
| Known for | Mysterious disappearance and posthumous rediscovery nine years later |
| Height | 6 ft (183 cm) |
Robert Hoagland (June 9, 1963[1] – December 5, 2022) was a resident of Newtown, Connecticut, United States, who disappeared in 2013. His whereabouts were unknown, with some investigators fearing he had met with foul play. In fact, he had actually resettled in Rock Hill, New York, under an assumed name, Richard King, which was not discovered until after his death in late 2022.
On the morning of July 28, 2013, security footage at a Mobil gas station in Newtown captured Hoagland, a local chef and property appraiser, buying a map along with fuel for his wife's car. He was last seen by anyone who knew him later that morning, when his son bid goodbye as Hoagland was mowing the lawn of the family home, a conversation also witnessed by a neighbor. Hoagland failed to show up for work the next morning or pick up his wife when she returned home from an overseas trip that afternoon. He was reported missing.
Police investigated several sightings of Hoagland over the next year, mostly nearby.[2] Tips also placed him in southern California[3] and South Carolina;[4] neither they nor the alleged sightings yielded any trace of him. Theories about his disappearance ranged from foul play possibly connected to his son's drug problems to an attempt to start a new life. The case was featured on an episode of the Investigation Discovery series Disappeared.[5][6]
Hoagland's disappearance was resolved almost a decade later when his body was found by a roommate in a Rock Hill, New York, apartment on December 5, 2022, where he had been living under the name Richard King. Deputies from the Sullivan County Sheriff's Office found paperwork with his real name on it, and notified Newtown police.[7]
- ^ "MISSING PERSON: Robert "Hoagy" Hoagland, Sandy Hook, Connecticut" (PDF). Texas Equusearch. February 3, 2023. Retrieved February 3, 2023.
- ^ Mason, Ari (July 24, 2014). "Newtown Man Missing for Nearly a Year". NBC Connecticut.
- ^ "Police In Connecticut Think Man Missing Since July May Be In Southland". CBS Los Angeles. December 19, 2013. Retrieved July 20, 2016.
- ^ Gorosko, Andrew (November 7, 2014). "Search For Missing Man Turns To South Carolina". Newtown Bee. Retrieved July 21, 2016.
- ^ Oliveira, Nelson (May 31, 2016). "Documentary sheds light on Newtown disappearance probe". The News-Times. Danbury, CT. Retrieved July 20, 2016.
- ^ "A Family Man". Disappeared. Season 7. Episode 8. May 31, 2016. Investigation Discovery. Retrieved July 21, 2016.
- ^ Blonstein, Cailyn (December 7, 2022). "Missing Newtown Man Living Under Alias Found Dead Nearly 10 Years Later: PD". WVIT. Retrieved December 7, 2022.