Teen missing after visiting rest stop for a "high school project"

What has become of poor Dante?

Hope the kid is okay.

Well, this being DL, I'll offer the DL answer. The interstate rest stops in CA are NOTORIOUS cruising spots, both inside the bathrooms and in wooded areas around the stop when they exist. Also, people just sit in cars waiting for people and invite willing participants to join them in the car.

If he got into the wrong person's car, this may not end well, unfortunately.

[quote]While the sheriff's office didn't provide details on the school work he may have been doing at the location, it said that he may have been equipped with water bottles, a hand towel, a shovel and snow boots.

I really need to hear more about this "school project."

Was he really there for a school project or is that what he told his mother?

Has it been confirmed with his school?

They shouldn’t be going to rest stops.

Growing teen boys need their rest, too.

Most people know that Rest Stops aren't places to linger or fraternize with strangers.

[quote]he may have been equipped with water bottles, a hand towel, a shovel and snow boots.

Obviously, "school project" was a cover story since the school would have been able to provide information. Even if it were a "project" that he designed and executed himself, rather than a specific go-to-a-rest-stop-project, they'd still be able to understand what he was doing there if such a project existed.

How horrifying, though even if he went there for a hookup, to have (potentially) lost his life over a dumb horny teenaged mistake.

But why did he take a shovel?

He's been found dead. No details yet.

Foul play not suspected = suicide

"Foul play is not considered a factor in Dante de la Torre's death, the sheriff's office said."

Some people will do anything to avoid the Harry and Meghan documentary.

Maybe the weather killed him?

Poor guy. He would've eventually figured out the hair situation on his face.

No foul play? That means the cops probably roughed him up and left him for dead.

Could have gone to a place like that to kill himself, if he didn't want family to find him.

What kind of "project" would a 16-year-old high schooler be doing at a rest stop?

He was reportedly going there to take soil samples. That doesn't sound like a cover story for suicide to me. Maybe his death was accidental, like falling down a hill or getting run over in a hit and run.

Doesn’t this belong in the infamous Lizard Lot thread?

Poor Danté. He forgot that Hell had one more circle… 😱

[quote]or getting run over in a hit and run

Wouldn't that be foul play, r25?

[quote] No foul play? That means the cops probably roughed him up and left him for dead.

r21 Just a wild theory. He went to cruise the tearoom. Got busted and the crap beaten outta him by vice. I've seen it happen.

If they do not know cause of death, how exactly can they rule out foul play?

[quote]He was reportedly going there to take soil samples. That doesn't sound like a cover story for suicide to me.

He could've just as easily lied about what the shovel was for, saying it was school-related when he intended to dig his own grave.

R31, they may know the cause of death but are not making it public.

Soil is everywhere.. not just at rest stops.

R1 reminded me of a creepy/funny rest stop story a comedian told on a radio show years back. The comedian Patrice Oneal was driving from a gig at night and felt himself getting very sleepy. He wisely pulled in the parking lot of a McDonalds along the highway to grab a take a quick rest. He laid his seat back and was just dozing off when something made him open his eyes. He jerked up heart racing to see a nicely dressed man looking in at him. Patrice rolled down his window and the guy says "it's cold out here", then the guy pulls at the car door handle.

Patrice is still foggy from being woken up, and just stares back. They guy repeats "it's cold out here". Patrice tells him "go inside the McDonald's - there's coffee in there!". They stare at each other for a few more seconds before the man walks over to his own car (an Subaru with an Xmas tree tied to the roof), gets in and drives off. Then it hits Patrice - this dude is one of those married dads who stalk rest stops looking for hookups. Patrice said he was wide awake after that, and opened his eyes to a whole new side of suburban life.

Okay, the question now is, he's dead, so how can there be "no foul play"? Even suicide is foul.

Why do the authorities keep saying "no foul play"?

Something fishy here.

r39 Hell yeah. I'm Miss Thaaang, bitch.

The poor kid is dead. Have some respect.

I was very impressed with the lyrics for the song Maps in the musical Fun Home:

.

.

Four miles from our door

I-80 ran from shore to shore

On its way from the Castro

To Christopher Street

The road not taken

Just four miles from our door

.

.

As if had Bruce just picked a direction East or West he might have escaped tragedy and found happiness at either end. And I-80 was the gay pipeline to some place better for gays. Just a brilliant observation and interpretation into the musical.

Maybe he choked to death or had an asthma attack and just died. Unless the police are completely incompetent like in Moscow, Idaho and Uvalde, Texas.

[quote]Why do the authorities keep saying "no foul play"?

[quote]Something fishy here.

Neither fish nor foul, r38.

r43 I knew it! The Reptilians!!!

The thing about digging your own grave—putting the dirt back on top of you is rather tricky.

Like a pie without a top crust, r45.

"School project" sounds like a first thought from his poor, shocked parents. What in the world are they supposed to say? I feel sorry for this kid and hope they find him well. Please stay away from rest stops and watch your back, side and front. Even if only a fraction of what you hear is true, it's a messed up world in which we find ourselves.

[quote] He looks older than 16.

r47 Oh stop. He's a child.

His hair is awfully thinning for a 16 year-old. He reminds me of a more white trash Chase Chrisley.

R48 he's already been found dead

R36, do you understand that "soil" isn't something that exists in the same composition everywhere on earth? I'm not particularly invested in the "school project " story, but there is a reason why scientists take soil samples.

Maybe he had to poop and he strained too hard and busted a blood vessel in his brain.

Okay, assuming the school project story is on the up and up (I know), there's a couple of possibilities there. My first thought was that they were learning about geocaching, and he was going to find the cache on the rest stop land. Second thought was that the rest stop may have had some sort of historic association. For example, there's a rest stop in Wyoming that's on land that used to be a cattle ranch owned by one of Winston Churchill's uncles. And there's a rest stop in Montana whose restroom stall doors are made from former prison cell doors from the old state prison.

Best guess: given it's called the Gold Run rest stop, it could be it's in an area that had previously been prospected for gold. He may have been digging soil samples to see if he could find any gold flakes.

Though it's not common, it does happen that some teen boys die suddenly from previously-unknown heart conditions. If it wasn't suicide, that could be what happened to him.

[quote] He reminds me of a more white trash Chase Chrisley.

r51 Well, that's a low blow. He's Latino. That's not white trash by definition. I live in California and it's a whole different mien.

My heart goes out to the family.

Drug overdose - possibly fentanyl

The cops are covering up something. The mantra of "no foul play" is suspect. It's repeated in every story. Suicide. Fentanyl. Both are foul.

It does seem to be a nicer-than-average rest area (for California, at least.) I'm presuming he was at the eastbound rest area. I did notice that there is a warning for rattlesnakes in the area.

The rest areas along 55 in Illinois are nice, too. Some of them have little nature walkways. We're not talking about truck stops here.

Some of you are showing your age. Today's chicken do not hang out at a rest stop looking for sex...they go online, as they have been doing for 25 years.

Oftentimes there are wooded areas behind rest stops and it was probably the easiest place to drive to, park his car, and walk to the woods to accomplish whatever he was doing.

As far as what he was doing, he could have been collecting soil samples or water samples with the water bottles. The surprising aspects of the case are that he 1) left the school alone and unsupervised and apparently with the blessing of the school. (I had an open campus high school in the '70s and' 80s but that is a thing of the past.) 2) was found deep in the woods (unless that is where he needed to go to find a stream or pond).

If it was an accidental death he could have fallen and hit his head and died. There are many ways to die alone in the woods.

He could have eaten trail mix and died from an allergic reaction to peanut traces. He could have choked to death while eating something. He could have died after an asthma attack. My guess is it was something with his airway.

Suicide is certainly possible. If he knew enough about nature and science, he could have poisoned himself.

He could have rigged up a belt on a tree and died from auto-erotic asphyxiation.

He even could have smoked a joint laced with Fentanyl.

I'll wait for the autopsy report.

[quote] Some of you are showing your age. Today's chicken do not hang out at a rest stop looking for sex...they go online, as they have been doing for 25 years.

r62 Uh, I'm not saying Dante went there for quick sex, creep. Have respect for the boy.

In general rest stops are still hangouts for quick anonymous sex. And yes Virginia, that still goes on.

Meeting online is a longer more involved process. If you want a quickie, popular rest stops are still crawling with dudes. No hassle.

Get off your computer and get out in the world.

R63 Mary-Pat: You're not the center of the universe; no one is talking to you.

R63 is correct. Not saying that this boy was there for sex, but people DO still cruise bathrooms for sex, including—shocker—some very young people. It’s often faster and a surer thing than looking online.

What do Truckers LOVE? Meth! Where can you find it? At a Truck Stop!

He probably got a bad batch laced with fentanyl !

“Honey, can you pull over at the rest stop, I need to pick up a little meth for dinner!”

I knew that little whore was going to get in trouble one day. I told him not to go there.

[quote] Mary-Pat: You're not the center of the universe; no one is talking to you.

r64 Virginia, step away from your keyboard and get some fresh air. 🤣

[quote] [Dvorak] is correct. Not saying that this boy was there for sex, but people DO still cruise bathrooms for sex, including—shocker—some very young people. It’s often faster and a surer thing than looking online.

Thank you, r65. I just slung a cute 20-year-old over the bathroom sink and fucked his sweet ass last night. 😈

"Collecting soil samples" at a rest stop sounds like a code for something else...

Depressing and tragic. That's a nice car for a 16-year old, so not like he was poor, desperate trash out doing meth or fentanyl. I had a research project while in high school about 100 miles north of Colfax that involved collecting water samples from creeks that fed into the Sacramento River. Was studying salmon habitat. There were few places to park near where I needed to go. I went alone. If there was truly no foul play, I'll bet he fell into a ravine and hit his head in an accident. I was a cautious nerd. This kid beams with confidence, maybe too much confidence. Very sad. I wonder what his career dreams were. I did end up becoming a research scientist.

Too bad Dante didn't get a rhinoplasty.

Sad for this kid. R.I.P 🙏❤️.

[quote] "Foul play not suspected = suicide"

Suicide by surprise anal. Like suicide by cop...but...not.

Seriously though, I'll be curious to see what happens in this case. I suspect DL will continue to follow it.

Reminds me of when I was 18 and I met an auto mechanic in his empty garage for a school project. Looking back I’m glad I made it out alive.

She's obv dead. Cannibal got her. RIP.

[quote] Too bad Dante didn't get a rhinoplasty.

r73 Weirdo. You must be the "perfect nose" guy. Another creepy post from you and not cool at all on this thread.

Ugly as sin. Nobody cares!

Hopefully not another Kevin Bacon…

[quote]He probably got a bad batch laced with fentanyl

Maybe it was an accidental overdose. Was he found in a stall?

I just drove cross country and regular rest stops are not exactly hotbeds of gay lust.

R83 Where are the hotbeds gay lust?

The adult video stores along the way lol.

[quote]Maybe it was an accidental overdose. Was he found in a stall?

No, he wasn't. Why don't you read one of the articles linked here before talking out of your ass?

I’m gay lusting in my hot bed as we speak!

r87 Okay, get up off your ass and try a rest stop restroom.

It’s sad he looked like a cute kid

I meant he had his future ahead of him.

[quote]Too bad Dante didn't get a rhinoplasty.

He did need it. He was a cute kid. Sad.

What’s taking the DL sleuths so long to solve this?

The solution is an 8 part thread.

[quote]I feel sorry for this kid and hope they find him well.

You ain’t the sharpest fork in the spoon drawer, are ya?

Why are they so secretive about cause of death?

He shouldn’t have gone to the truck stops to get fucked.

[quote]Why are they so secretive about cause of death?

They're waiting for a higher bid from the producers of "Unsolved Mysteries."

Ugly people don't get attention on DL. Stop it! You are getting weak DL

[quote]Some people will do anything to avoid the Harry and Meghan documentary.

33 WW's for that?

Give me r45 any day!

How far was he from Moscow, Idaho?

Which circle of hell is Gold Run in?

Please let this youngster rest in peace.

Poor kid, he looks so sweet in that pic, it’s so sad.

I’m sure that everyone of us on here , especially in our younger rampant days when our brains were between our legs, put ourselves at risk in pursuit of cock.

Yes, r105. We even had a large thread on it.

We’ve all been there.

[quote]Please let this youngster rest in peace.

Oh, gee, you’re right, luv. I’m sure us discussing him on a discussion board is really having a deleterious effect on his ability to rest. We’ll be more quiet going forward.

Everyone: Shhhhhh!

His search reminds me of this Aggie joke:

An Aggie decides to raise chickens. So, he goes to the feed store and buys some chicks. He takes the chicks home, and plants them with their heads sticking up. He waters them, but they die. He goes back to the feed store and tells the proprietor that he bought defective chicks, and gets another set. This time he plants them with their heads sticking down. He waters them, but they die. He then sends a letter to his Alma Mater, describing the problem. They send a letter back asking for a soil sample.

<- Duh, you're supposed to plant the EGGS.

[quote] Please let this youngster rest in peace.

[quote] Oh, gee, you’re right, luv. I’m sure us discussing him on a discussion board is really having a deleterious effect on his ability to rest. We’ll be more quiet going forward.

r109 Respect, fool. You've never heard the term RIP? You must be a real toilet-licking whore. Hahaha.

Apparently R113 wasn't around during the "Cheerleaders Die in a Fiery Crash" thread.

I maintain the cops beat the shit outta him and left him to die.

I’m sure we’ll find out what happened by Part 12.

[quote]Depressing and tragic. That's a nice car for a 16-year old, so not like he was poor, desperate trash out doing meth or fentanyl.

You're kind of depressing and tragic, yourself.

[quote] Depressing and tragic. That's a nice car for a 16-year old, so not like he was poor, desperate trash out doing meth or fentanyl.

[quote] You're kind of depressing and tragic, yourself.

r117 Thank you. Just when I think one of the thilly queens here can't say anything more vapid and shallow, some twat comes along and says something even stupider.

Oh me oh my that's such a nice car. And no one to drive it. If he had been driving a 20 year old Hyundai, why would we give a fuck?

Dante, RIP young man.

R118 You're welcome. It was also the equating of being a poor teen with being "trash", and having drug problems. Or, the flip side: having money means you can't be a trashy person or do drugs. Sometimes I wonder if people like this are just trolling.

r119 Sadly it's something I see in the gay community all too often. It's grown men trying their hardest to act like shallow bimbos.

I judge people by their behavior, not the shape of their nose or what kind of car they drive.

R120 In college I knew a gay kid who was like this, a real snob. Hope he got more mature over time.

[121] Hahaha. Of course it's not only gay people. I just expect better from a people who have endured centuries of oppression.

[quote]I judge people by their behavior, not the shape of their nose

Thank you!

r123 Guys with big noses usually have other "big" body parts.

I got an a on my Adult Bookstore project.

He’s working a corner I’m WeHo; he’s fine and sends his love.

oh, how immediately people go towards death.

It's runaway 101 for the untroubled.

Pick a neutral, benign place that carries the assumption of traffick..

perfect for meeting strangers as well as not raising both eyebrows with the rents - a rest stop was probably closer than a mall or major airport.

It's funny how much in this age, we treat runaways as if they had to have problems at school, home or battling depression, or whatever. . . than just being immature sluts driven by basic instinct. The same goes to other poor decisions, like those lads/lasses deciding to climb electrical/water towers or jumping off cliffs. Even brainy kids are prone to this.. no suicidal ideation just bodily chemicals leading the thought processes. You can it over to why late bloomers tend to play it safe, though we've often written that up as immaturity and social dysfunction as well. You know, you really can't have it all. . . if you're kid is dull and boring, they're probably delayed in one way or another, if they're active and exciting, they're likely precocious in one way or another. But any case, Mommie Dearests, you're likely set to be blamed.

fraus are prone to the stranger danger scenario yet at the same time, if they think back to any of their exes, especially those that cheated on them. Maybe that would be the lens best looked at to this.

If such a scenario was true - it's more likely to be someone in his own age group, possibly in the same circumstances.. relatively mundane life, no indicators they would do something like this that builds up an intense relationship over just jacking off together online and cementing their mixed tape soundtracks to one another. It's possible, it's even a girl.

But fear, sensationalism, does make it more of a priority than kid led by his dick.

So, let's just hope.. he's turning tricks in the city with little Romeo.

Uh, r127, nice little psych 101 paper, but this dude is dayd.

R127 He was found dead on December 9th.

Hey, Elders, he could have been making Tik toks or other video content. It's a thing

"Missing: Truck Stop Suck Off Vol. 6."

"Hey, Elders, he could have been making Tik toks or other video content. It's a thing."

So are illicit hookups. And Coca-Cola. And dogs.

Beyond sad. Think back to when you were just 16 and barely knew the world, in comparison to your current age… 😢 this poor soul barely experienced life in this world before leaving it.

[quote] [R134] "Beyond sad."

[quote] Which is?

r135 Are you a sociopath by any chance? Just askin'.

He went to a rest stop, but it would be his final rest.

Platonic Caveman is a Cunt. Hope you go missing soon.

R136 Nah just funny when people use pointless phrases

^ sociopath indeed. Fuckin weirdo.

R142 thanks for posting the article that this thread was pretty much based on 2 months ago.

[quote] thanks for posting the article that this thread was pretty much based on 2 months ago.

r143 Never forget.