Episode 19: Daniel Robinson

Welcome to Mysteries of the Missing, a podcast and blog about missing person's cases. You can find my podcast, my blog, and my social media pages on my Linktree at: https://linktr.ee/MysteriesoftheMissing.

Keep in mind that I am only reporting the events of what have happened, per my research through various media outlets. I’m not trained in any way in true crime. Instead, I'm a published author who loves to blog. Also, I’m solely a human being that’s trying to do my part to get the message of the story of Daniel Robinson out there so that one day, hopefully, he may be found, and his case may be solved. Join me as I dive into the last day that people saw Daniel and what happened after he was last seen.

Daniel Robinson, missing since June 2021

"According to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons (NamUS) database, more than 600,000 people go missing annually in the United States. This means that about 6.5 people per 100,000 people are reported missing nationwide. Even more distressing, approximately 90,000 people go missing each year and are never found. This stark reality means that only 0.7333% of people who go missing are found and identified. What my family has endured is a reflection of the challenges faced by countless families throughout our nation’s history." - Pleasehelpfinddaniel.com

The desert is a vast place of nothingness filled with nature that stakes its claim. Killer bees, wild donkeys, coyotes, mountain lions, and giant tarantulas have been known to roam this desolate place. Legends surround deserts, like that of an oasis city called Zerzura, which is home to a sleeping king and queen. The Marfa Lights of Western Texas are said to be the sign of an extraterrestrial existence. Arizona's Casa Grande Mountain boasts of a strange mist that is said to follow people.

Yet many people love to visit the deserts of America each year. The United States is home to the Red, Mojave, and Great Salt Lake Deserts, which covers a vast amount of land.

2021 was a year that saw the world reemerging after the Covid-19 Pandemic. Many who once had to work from home started to slowly make their way back into in-person work society. Daniel Robinson was born in 1996 without a right hand. However, that didn't stop him from pursuing athletics. He was a skilled athlete, participating in several different sports. Daniel also loved competing against his siblings, especially academically. In 2017, he graduated from the University of Charleston in 2019.

Daniel Robinson is a nature-lover and an adventurer, known to look for fun and excitement wherever he can. He has many dreams and aspirations for the future. In fact, Daniel took on a Hydrogeologist job with Webber Waterworks at a water well in the Sonoran Desert in Buckeye, Maricopa County, Arizona after graduating from college.

At the age of 24 in June 23, 2021, Daniel began work at 9 am in a remote site in the desert when his co-worker said he left his site in his 2017 blue Jeep Renegade. Daniel's dad had spoken to him two days before he went missing.

According to Daniel's coworker, Daniel had been saying things that didn't make sense that morning, like asking if "he wanted to go and rest." Daniel left shortly after making these odd statements, at roughly fifteen minutes later. After Daniel left, the coworker alerted the supervisor of Daniel's strange behavior. By 3 pm that day, the coworker was told that Daniel was still gone from work, after repeated, unsuccessful attempts to reach him by phone call and texting.

On July 17, 2021, a rancher was searching for his lost cattle in the area. Two days later, on July 23, 2021, the rancher came back to the area and that's when he says he discovered Daniel's Jeep, turned on its side.

All of Daniel's items were found outside of the Jeep, scattered around: his keys, his cell phone, wallet, and clothes. Someone who was willingly leaving wouldn't leave those things behind. Oddly enough, an expert hired by Daniel's dad found data on the black box showing that the Jeep was started more than 40 times after the airbags were deployed and someone drove it more than 11 miles after it first crashed.

Daniel's Dad, David Robinson, hired a private investigator to assist him with finding Daniel. The investigator, Mr. McGrath, found red paint transfer on the Jeep, suggesting it had a prior collision before falling into the ravine where it was eventually found.

Did Daniel accidentally crash his Jeep, tried to restart it until he was successful, then crashed again, eventually landing his vehicle in the spot it was found? Or was someone else in charge of Daniel's Jeep?

Daniel's phone and computer showed Google searches on the following words: 1. "Delete Instagram account." 2. "Explosion." 3. "Love changed me." 4. "Shooting Tempe." (Tempe is a city in Arizona, by the way) 5. "I'm okay to do things I hate."

Was Daniel planning on going missing? Or was someone staging the devices to make it look like Daniel was searching the words that were found in the Google searches?

David's investigator said that it looked like someone had been in Daniel's apartment, messing around with his items. Also, the Tempe Police Department discovered that someone had done Google searches on Daniel's computer after he crashed. Who would be in Daniel's apartment after he went missing -- could it be someone who was responsible for Daniel going missing?

The FBI is finally taking a second look at the case, after David Robinson asked them the first time to help with Daniel's case and was denied. So far, no new leads have turned up. In addition, the Maricopa County Sheriff's Department and the Tempe Police Department have helped with Daniel's case.

A month after Daniel went missing, in July 2021, a human skull was found in the vicinity where Daniel's Jeep was discovered. Unfortunately, it wasn't his skull.

In September 2021, the Buckeye Police Department announced that they had used cadaver dogs, helicopters, ATVs, and drones to scan a 70 square mile radius, without any results.

Then, in October 2021, the local police said that they believe that Daniel was in love with a woman he met while delivering alcohol to her through Instacart. The woman invited Daniel in to drink with her and her friend. David denies that Daniel loved the woman. David says that he spoke with Daniel two days before his disappearance, and that he was not in love with her. Police believe this could be a case of jealousy, someone who was jealous of Daniel's relationship with this woman, but David denies this. The woman apparently stated that she was uncomfortable with Daniel's behavior toward her, especially citing that he would show up at her place unannounced several times after they met. The police tried to pose the idea that Daniel could have been suicidal over this woman, but all friends, coworkers, and family have denied this claim. However, Daniel did text the woman several times, even after rejections, and one of his texts to her said, “The world can get better, but I’ll have to take all the time I can or we can, whatever to name it. I’ll either see you again or never see you again."

What did that cryptic message mean? "I'll either see you again or never see you again?" Was Daniel simply saying he would be with her or not?

This brings us to November 2021, where a second set of human remains were discovered. After sending out the remains, the police cited that they believe these remains also did not belong to Daniel. So disheartening! Well, it is good for someone, if they step forward and claim their loved ones, but Daniel was still missing at this point, and still is today, in 2024.

Many people go missing in the desert. It's huge and most of the time, accidents happen to people who are alone out there. Could Daniel have gotten into an accident, been disoriented from crashing his vehicle, then wandered off and stopped alone somewhere, unable to continue walking? This is just an assertion.

David says that the Buckeye Police Department have mishandled the case. According to David, the Buckeye Police Department's timeline is wrong. Also, they were quick to rule out foul play in Daniel's case. This wouldn't be the first case I'm speaking about where law enforcement dragged their feet or made erroneous assumptions on someone's disappearance, especially a person of color.

Unfortunately, David says he has also done most of the leg work to try to find his son. In fact, the police department suggested Daniel stripped down and went into the desert to join a monastery. This is a first for me - I've never heard that of before. Strange suggestion. The family of missing people doing most of the searching for their missing loved one is something I see in many missing person's cases quite a lot as well. Daniel's dad has done multiple searches (45 searches over 3,500 desert acres, in fact) for his son in the Sonora Desert since Daniel's disappearance in 2021.

40% of missing person's cases are those belonging to black people, yet African Americans only make up 13% of the United States population. We see this in the media: Most of the cases covered by the news, true crime podcasters, and the like are those of white men and women. Rarely do we hear about people of color, especially black people, being reported on. Case in point: Gabby Petito went missing around the same time that Daniel did, and her case exploded. The term that has been coined for this is "Missing White Women's Syndrome." "The late journalist Gwen Ifill coined the phrase "Missing White Woman Syndrome" to describe the media's fascination with, and detailed coverage of, the cases of missing or endangered white women - compared to the seeming disinterest in covering the disappearances of people of color." - NPR Was Gabby's disappearance as important as Daniel's? One hundred percent! Every missing person deserves a chance to have their story told. However, look at how fast Gabby's body was found because she was reported on immediately, and look at how two people of color went missing around the same time Gabby did and are still not found (Daniel Robinson and Lauren Cho). Granted, Lauren's body was eventually found...but where is Daniel?

David Robinson is currently hosting a petition for people to write letters to the Maricopa County Sheriff's Department and the Buckeye Police Department, in order to persuade them to keep searching for Daniel. David is working hard to make sure his son's case doesn't go cold, as it will soon, since Daniel has been missing for almost two years now.

What do you think happened to Daniel?

Daniel Robinson is described as an African American man, 5'8", 150-165 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes. If you have any information about Daniel's case, please contact the Buckeye Police Department at 623-949-6411, Daniel's dad David at pleasehelpfinddaniel@yahoo.com or https://pleasehelpfinddaniel.com/contact/, or you may email me at mysteriesofthemissing2023@gmail.com. A reward of $10,000 is being offered by the family to find Daniel.

Please follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok under the username @mysteriesofthemissing. Also, please share this blog post/podcast episode/social media post so that we can help find Daniel. On Pleasehelpfinddaniel.com, you can print out flyers to distribute or post up in your area, wherever you are in the United States or in the world. Also, you may contribute to David's GoFundMe so he can search for Daniel at https://gofund.me/6a33f551. This has been another episode of Mysteries of the Missing. Until next time, stay safe...