Macin Smith still missing — with no hot leads — more than 2.5 years later

Two years and seven months after he left his St. George home, the one thing known to be true about Macin Smith's disappearance is that he was never seen or heard from again.

Smith — who went missing when he was a 17-year-old high school student — is now 20 years old, and his whereabouts remain unknown among his family, police detectives and the community at large.

Perhaps the most perplexing aspects of Smith's case are that he seemingly left with the clothes on his back, his electronics have given little information to detectives, and there have been zero confirmed sightings of him.

Smith's story has reached the hearts and minds of citizens across the entire United States. The Facebook group "Help Find Macin Smith" has reached more than 55,700 members, and his family and investigators say his episode on the Discovery Channel's "Disappeared" television show sparks interest from viewers across the nation who have never met Smith or even visited Southern Utah.

Although detectives recently found new information to access on Smith's electronics, few developments have been made since the most recent ground search in two locations near St. George was executed, with no direct leads, last October.

In the meantime, his family and investigators are narrowing down what might have happened to Smith on the day he went missing: Sept. 1, 2015.

Investigators focus on newfound electronic information

On the morning Smith went missing, his mother and father were home, and they reported hearing the garage door open and close as if he was heading off to catch the bus to school — it was around 7:40 a.m.

However, the night prior, Smith's mother had unplugged the home's internet router sometime after her son was in bed so he wouldn't be tempted to stay up late using his electronics on a school night. His father woke up around 1:30 a.m., found Smith using his electronics after his curfew, and confiscated his laptop computer and cell phone.

Smith's parents relinquished those devices to the St. George Police Department after he was reported missing. Sgt. Choli Ence previously told The Spectrum & Daily News very little information to aid the investigation was gleaned from his texts, emails and internet history.

But other helpful information may be on its way, according to a video Smith's mother posted on the Facebook group. Tracey Bratt-Smith has recently taken a step back from engaging with online users and speaking directly with The Spectrum & Daily News for personal reasons.

"I'm in possession of a hard drive from the police department," Bratt-Smith Said in the video. "They downloaded something onto a hard drive, and we're in trying to figure out how to get information from that."

Although an initial look into Smith's devices didn't reveal any clue as to where he went, a deeper look might.

When information is deleted from a desktop computer, for example, the file can still exist on the device's hard drive, which can be accessed later. However, some of that electronic information can get re-written or deleted when new information is saved onto that device. The code can be broken up or scattered, requiring a separate system to sort and access the information that cannot be found on the device itself.

According to Jolyne Gailey, an administrator of the "Help Find Macin Smith" Facebook group, Smith's family and contributors to the investigation have been conducting their own research on the information from the hard drive.

"We are trying to un-encrypt them to see what we can find out through independent research," Gailey said. "Nothing has come of that so far."

In addition to sorting through the electronic information, Bratt-Smith said in the video she's working with a case manager with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to digitally create a photo of her son that demonstrates what he might look like now that he's 20 years old.

The process, Bratt-Smith said, is photos of herself, Smith's father, and his brothers and sisters from when they were aged 20 years are combined with Smith's photo from his teenage years.

"They mesh it together and add it to (Smith's) original photo to come up with something, hopefully, that looks like what he looks like now," Bratt-Smith explained in the video post.

Ultimately, though, the case still isn't taking any clear direction.

"Unfortunately there really isn't anything to report," Gailey said. "We're just hoping that someone knows something and will come forward."

Smith's family dwindles possible scenarios

Police detectives and Smith's family receive reports of sightings, theories, and even psychic visions on a daily basis, according to Gailey.

Those leads are all taken seriously, regardless of who or where it comes from. Gailey said some of the psychics have said Smith is dead.

"We've been told he's alive in California, that he's buried 6-feet under gravel close to his home town, that he's hiding in trees, or he's back in Canada..." Gaily said. "Ninety percent of his doppelgangers are in the California area."

The family has also received tips that Smith was seen in Washington, Nevada, Oregon and Mexico. But because there's typically not enough information to follow up on the lead, namely a photo or video of the person in question, most of these types of tips are ruled out by other means.

The way Gailey sees it is there are two scenarios that seem the most likely: First, Smith is deceased. Second, Smith is being held against his will.

"There's always the possibility that he does not want to be found, but I do not believe that's in his nature," she explained. "He was a mama's boy and accustomed to a certain lifestyle. I personally do not believe he is homeless and simply just not contacting his family."

Of course, Gailey added, both of those theories are simply speculation. Nothing — not even the theory that Smith is deceased — has panned out.

"The only thing that has really changed is that we have been able to rule out a few of the mysteries of potential sightings," Gailey said. "He literally vanished."

A call to action

Shortly before saying "goodbye" to the tens of thousand Facebook users who would perchance see her video, Bratt-Smith had one request: Reach out to 20 people in honor of Smith's 20th birthday.

"Reach out a hand of fellowship and love to each other and making sure everyone in your circle has support and love and appreciation," she said." I feel like that's important when I think of my boy and how alone he felt."

Bratt-Smith has previously told The Spectrum & Daily News Smith had a history of depression. He was bullied in middle school and is intrinsically shy, she said. It's a type of depression she described as "suffering in silence."

Additionally, Gaily is leading an effort to encourage those who have been following Smith's story to distribute an updated BOLO (be on the lookout) flyer within their communities.

Anyone who has information leading to Macin's return home is instructed to contact St. George Police at 435-627-4300. There is a $10,000 reward for any information regarding his whereabouts. Macin's National Center for Missing and Endangered Children case number is #1254151. Connect with Macin's Army on Facebook at facebook.com/macinsarmy.

Follow reporter Emily Havens on Twitter, @EmilyJHavens, and find her on Facebook at facebook.com/emilyjhavens. Call her at 435-674-6214 or email her at ehavens@thespectrum.com.

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