Guys, this has to be the weirdest case I've ever seen. Let me see if I've got the facts straight.

On January 24, 1984, Tim Molnar disappears from Daytona Beach Florida after withdrawing all but 10 dollars from his savings account. He only takes one pair of clothes with him.

Two weeks later, his family finds out that he bought gas in a city 150 miles north of Daytona Beach on the day he disappeared.

The Molnars receive a letter from an auto impound company stating that Tim's car had been found abandoned in Georgia in a parking lot one block away from a Greyhound station.

The Unsolved Mysteries segment airs, speculating that Tim bought a bus ticket and started a new life.

A man named Stephen Cull sees the segment, and recognizes the clothing described in the segment as matching those he found on a dead body he had seen in the woods in Wisconsin in 1986. He calls UM and reports this bit of information.

Subsequent DNA tests on the body in Wisconsin confirm that the body is indeed that of Tim Molnar.

Now, I don't know about you guys, but this just makes absolutely zero sense. I have tried and tried to come up with a reasonable (or unreasonable, for that matter) scenario to explain this, but I just don't understand how it could have all happened like this. Does anyone else remember any facts to the case that I'm missing out on? Any speculation or theories as to what might have happened? I'd appreciate your responses.

Wow, that is a strange case! Its been a while since I've seen it but it reminds me a little of the Gayle Delano story. She left some clues that almost seemed to indicate she was abducted and wanted her family to think that. In reality she traveled (possibly hitchhiked) across the country and ended up committing suicide. I wonder if Tim for whatever reason had suicidal thoughts but wanted to spare his family the pain of having to find out so he took out some money (and sold his belongings for more money) and used that for traveling expenses so he could travel far from home and commit suicide hoping his family would never know what really happened. It really was pure luck that he was found and identified. Of course thats just one possible scenario.

Im not familiar with htis case tho it sounds awfully interesting.
Questions:
Did a medical examiner ever rule what type of death it was (any stab wouldns, etc.)
Was the man who spotted the body cleared of any suspician?
Thanks...

I wondered at first of the guy who found his body had any part in his death. But after thinking about it, it doesn't make sense that he would bring attention to his remains if he was responsible since by then it was probably a cold case not to mention people in that area had probably never even heard of Tim Molnar. Here is the update page of the official UM website. It said they couldn't tell what the cause of death was:

http://www.unsolved.com/UD238-Molnar.html

Originally posted by crystaldawn
I wondered at first of the guy who found his body had any part in his death. But after thinking about it, it doesn't make sense that he would bring attention to his remains if he was responsible since by then it was probably a cold case not to mention people in that area had probably never even heard of Tim Molnar. Here is the update page of the official UM website. It said they couldn't tell what the cause of death was:

http://www.unsolved.com/UD238-Molnar.html


Actually, I saw a case on "Cold Case Files" on A&E that was almost exactly like that!! A hiker found a body in California, and it turned out to be a boy who was missing for about 20 years. It turns out that the hiker who found the body was the murderer, and it was only by sheer coincidence that the police put 2 and 2 together.

I, however, did not get the sense that the man who found Tim Molnar had anything to do with the murder (although it's always an avenue that needs to be checked out). Like you said, he seemed very forthcoming, and in the other case, once the police started asking the hiker more questions about the body, his memory suddenly started getting very hazy.

Actually, I saw a case on "Cold Case Files" on A&E that was almost exactly like that!! A hiker found a body in California, and it turned out to be a boy who was missing for about 20 years. It turns out that the hiker who found the body was the murderer, and it was only by sheer coincidence that the police put 2 and 2 together.

I, however, did not get the sense that the man who found Tim Molnar had anything to do with the murder (although it's always an avenue that needs to be checked out). Like you said, he seemed very forthcoming, and in the other case, once the police started asking the hiker more questions about the body, his memory suddenly started getting very hazy.

do you remember the name of the person on that Cold Case episode? that sounds like an interesting story

I'll give a million dollars to anyone who can come up with ANY explanation as to how this occurred the way it did. It makes absolutely ZERO sense. Seriously; I'll give you a million bucks if you can.

http://www.aetv.com/tv/shows/coldcasefiles/archives.jsp?aid=12199127 I remember that Cold Case episode. I think this is the one you were talking about.

I'll give a million dollars to anyone who can come up with ANY explanation as to how this occurred the way it did. It makes absolutely ZERO sense. Seriously; I'll give you a million bucks if you can.

I just saw this case for the first time on crystaldawn's DVDs volume 8, but I didn't realize there was an update until searching here. I think crystaldawn provided you with a very cogent explanation of what happened, so I guess the million dollars is hers. My best explanation is that one as well - he was evidently alive when he got to Georgia (no sign that he was killed), he had clearly intended to go off somewhere (withdrawing the money), and he decided he didn't need the few personal possessions he had (only bringing one change of clothes and perhaps selling or just giving away what was in his trunk). Sounds like a suicide to me.

I think crystaldawn provided you with a very cogent explanation of what happened, so I guess the million dollars is hers.

Thanks mozartpc. I win...cool. :lol: Although admittedly the facts of this case are extremely bizarre I think its just another instance where UM tries to make something more sinister than is really the case. The big fact that points to this is the fact that I believe his family did say he was acting strangely before he disappeared. Surely they must have known in their mind that him leaving of his own free will was a possibility but I certainly don't fault them for bringing the case to UM in hopes of finding some resolution. I would have done the same thing had it been my child. I think the fact that UM helped solve his case as well as Gayle Delano's case (considering how far away their bodies were found from where they were last seen) is nothing short of a miracle.

Well the thing I find weird here is, if Molnar was going to commit suicide why would he go all the way to some woods in Wisconsin to do it? This is a truly strange case, although obviously there are really only two possibilites. One he commited suicide, the other that he was murdered for the stuff in his car. Yet with the exception of the stereo how would a killer know about the other stuff in the trunk of the car? Could Tim get from Lake City to Atlanta on one tank of gas? Either way, the biggest question I have is how he would wind up in some woods in Wisconsin?

This seems like another Gayle Delano to me, although the segment doesn't mention what problems, if any, Tim Molnar was experiencing at the time.

But yeah, the suicide theory is plausible and seems the most likely to me. He did pack a few items in his trunk, but he probably did that in the event he needed more money for traveling expenses, and could have sold them. As for the items not being in the car when it was discovered, I would imagine theives probably got to it, it was an abandoned car after all. The segment doesn't mention if they asked around at the Greyhound bus station at Georgia, I would imagine that would have been important. Man, if UM ever comes back, hopefully they'll provided us with more details in segments. I agree crystaldawn, it's a miracle this case was sorta-solved, Molnar covered his tracks pretty well and went to the opposite end of the country. When they say that he was acting "strangely" before he disappeared, I wonder what the meant. Was he happy, depressed? Usually, people that are about to commit suicide will act unusually happy before doing so, as they believe that their problems are about to be over. Unfortunately, if Molnar was experiencing problems, he was about to inherit a 50k estate. Tragic ending to this one.

While I think suicide is a good possibility (although I think if he had shot himself or something they would have been able to tell by examing his bones) I also think that maybe Tim could have just been trying to run away. Gayle Delano's intent was clearly to end her life as she apparently brought enough drugs with her to overdose (according to the trucker that apparently gave her a ride) but I'm not sure if that Molnar's intent or not. Did Tim want to get away from his home and end his life thinking he would spare his family some pain (which of course is not the case) or did he just run away to start a new life and probably ran out of money and ended up dying alone of exposure? Of course you have to wonder if Tim had known about the inheritance he was about to receive if it would have made a difference. Personally I think it probably would have.

While I think suicide is a good possibility (although I think if he had shot himself or something they would have been able to tell by examing his bones) I also think that maybe Tim could have just been trying to run away. Gayle Delano's intent was clearly to end her life as she apparently brought enough drugs with her to overdose (according to the trucker that apparently gave her a ride) but I'm not sure if that Molnar's intent or not.

I wouldn't trust anything that trucker said, crystaldawn. I believe he said he saw her three months after she disappeared, but she actually killed herself in that hotel only a few days after she disappeared. In other words, the trucker was mistaken about who he saw!

200th post!

Come to think of it, He may have tried to start a new life. It's tough to tell in this case, because the date of death is unknown. Whereas, in Gayle Delano's case, an exact date of death could be determined. Molnar's body was probably so decomposed by that point that a cause of death couldn't be determined. I have the segment, but not the update. Does anyone know what the update said?

I didn't like the trucker in the Gayle Delano segment. He's obviously mistaken, plus he didn't seem to like nothern folk like myself too much.

Saw the RS version of this case recently and wasnt aware of the update. I tend to agree with some of you that it could be like the Gayle Delano situation.