This morning I saw a bizarre story about a man named Adam Hecht. He befriended a homeless person in Beverly Hills, CA named Tony and he soon ended up missing. This show was originally from 1989. Has there ever been an update to this weird story?

Originally posted by mrtuesdaynight
This morning I saw a bizarre story about a man named Adam Hecht. He befriended a homeless person in Beverly Hills, CA named Tony and he soon ended up missing. This show was originally from 1989. Has there ever been an update to this weird story?

Actually, it aired during the 1990-91 season (please pardon me for correcting you). According to the episode guide, the segment aired on October 17, 1990. It doesn't mention Adam Hecht, Jr. by name, but it said that he was the son of a Hollywood movie producer, and disappeared from Beverly Hills. So you can pretty much put two and two together.

Hecht disappeared in the summer of 1989. Also, as mentioned at the end of the segment, Adam Hecht's brother approached the homeless man in the summer of 1990, on the one-year anniversary of Adam's disappearance. He asked the guy about the fate of Adam, but to no avail.

No update has ever been made on the show, so this basically means the case is still unsolved. :(

Originally posted by Kane
It doesn't mention Adam Hecht, Jr. by name, but it said that he was the son of a Hollywood movie producer, and disappeared from Beverly Hills.

Oops! He wasn't a Jr. His brother Harold was (which made their father, a film producer, Harold Hecht, Sr.) Please excuse the initial error.

Harold Hecht, Jr. was, of course, interviewed on the segment, and later tried asking the homeless man about Adam's fate without much luck.

:eek: When you saw Adam Hecht later in the show did you see Josef Joplin:eek: ?

And what was Monday-Fridays segments at 11 and 12 pm
tell me as many as you can remember


Thanks

Originally posted by TheWho
And what was Monday-Fridays segments at 11 and 12 pm
tell me as many as you can remember


Thanks

The 1987 disappearance of Dale Kerstetter was featured at noon on Tuesday (April 30) or Wednesday (May 1). This same broadcast also featured the unsolved 1987 murders of a young couple (Jay Cook and Tanya Cuylenborg) and the 1967 murder of Ralph Probst (an Illinois cop). All three cases are officially unsolved, ditto the 1994 murder of Kristie Lee (of Florida) which aired on Friday (5/3) during the noon episode.

I can't remember too much from last week. Sorry.

BUMP!

http://us.imdb.com/Name?Hecht,+Harold

That might be a little OT, but Herold Hecht did lots of stuff.

any signs of Adam?

any signs of Adam?
Sadly, it doesn't look like it. Here's his doe network profile:
http://www.doenetwork.org/

This was a very strange case. Almost no evidence to go on, no body and really no motive for anyone that knew him. Just very, very odd.

This was a very strange case. Almost no evidence to go on, no body and really no motive for anyone that knew him. Just very, very odd.

The problem with this case is that we are dealing with a sub-culture that has no televisions, addresses or phone numbers(the homeless). How is a homeless drifter in Venice beach going to watch unsolved mysteries and call in to say that he saw Adam a week ago?:confused:

And those that do have televisions, addresses and phone numbers tend to avoid the homeless at all costs. When was the last time you had an in depth face to face conversation with a homeless person?

If you think about it, all this defeates the concept of Unsolved Mysteries to begin with.

Remember what robert stack said at the end of the segment?

"harold caught up with tony once more, and asked if he knew where adam was. He simply walked away" or something like that.

I watched this eppie again with some friends (avid UM fans also). Anyway, we started talking about the fact that Adam was rich and maybe Tony or some of the other homeless people taking advantage of that and perhaps killing Tony. One of my other friends said something about the weird closeness between Tony and Adam. His theory was that Tony might have read more into Adam trying to know more about him and the homeless. He implied that maybe Tony and Adam were more than just good friends but maybe that Adam didn't want to push things further with Tony for fear of how it would affect his family and his social status. Maybe he tried to end things with Tony and Tony either killed him either directly or indirectly through another homeless person.


I thought it was an interesting theory but I tend to lean towards Adam being taken advantage of for his kindness and money by someone in the homeless community he was trying to know more about.

I think he was ultimately killed. When his brother went to check up on him after not hearing from him in a few days, Toni wouldn't let him in the room. Seems as if he was hiding something. I think the most logical conclusion is that Adam tried to do a good thing and help out some unfortunate people, but then realized that no good deed goes unpunished and that is when he met his demise.

nice avatar, BTW:p

I think he was ultimately killed. When his brother went to check up on him after not hearing from him in a few days, Toni wouldn't let him in the room. Seems as if he was hiding something

It's not out of the question that Tony killed Adam in his apartment and disposed of his body.

Again, Tony may be more up to speed than we think.

Remember what robert stack said at the end of the segment?

"harold caught up with tony once more, and asked if he knew where adam was. He simply walked away" or something like that.
Pretty much. Toni did reply though. Harold asked Toni if he knew were Adam was and Toni replied that maybe if he spent some time on the streets with him he could possibly find clues to his disappearance. And that was that.

is that Tony guy still alive?

this is one of the mystrious stories of all on unsolved mysteries and a good example of what possibly could happen to someone by letting them stay in a place with someone. i guess they said in the end there were a couple possibilties- 1. adam hecht could have decided to go another type of lifestyle? 2. he may have gone back onto the streets to hang out with some of the other homeless people and maybe someone down there robbed him and injured him? 3. maybe tony disposed on him hit him in the head in the apratment?
a couple clues say that his car was found a short time later and 600 hundred dollars was found in his wallet with credit cards. this does seem strange as most people carry there wallet? he had a business training people in tennis and was a punctual guy. he had a loving family. did he decide to change his lifestyle and live like homeless people? it does seem to go against the grain of his things he was doing? one more clue in the end was tony was met a year later by adams brother and said if he would spend a little time with him around the streets he might find out where his brother was,not sure what this means?

it was 1 month after he disappeared that the car was found. a rented car that he rented while his car was in a repair shop. his wallet with checks credit cards and money was found. he could have gone back to hang out with some people on the streets and someone rob him and dispose of him? maybe tony had something to do with it? seems kinda funny if someone passed on, he would be identified by his fingerprints in california? would have been labeled a john doe but identified? does seem hard to believe he would get up and leave his family completely? his mother and bother,he seemed to have a great relationship with them. seeems like wrong doing was done and it must have happened back on the streets one night or at the hands of toney.

I have a sneaky suspicion that Adam Hecht might have done the same thing that the Chris McCandless kid did, he just decided to take off and give up his life of comforts for the ultimate adventure; the Road. I wander if he's still out there somewhere?
If the Tony guy had something to do with it, wouldn't he have robbed Adam with all that money he had in his wallet?

It's almost obvious Tony had something to do with it. Maybe he didn't kill him, but it's obvious he had something to do with it.

i believe adam would have not left his family for a long extended time...he may have gone away for a couple days, but he loved his family. in the piece they said he and tony began to go out and night and start trying to provide and give things to others out in the alleys, it is possible that he went back there to do the same and someone robbed him and got rid of him and hid him away so no one could find him. body could have been hid away so good no one would find him. other possible thing is tony hit him on the head and disposed of him hisself someplace no one could find him. thing is tony didn't realize once he gets hurt theres no more friend.

In my opinion, Tony is the only person who knows what happened to this guy. He has to. He just does.

this is one of the rare episodes that shows somebody you cant help the homeless regardless if they are white or black that they may have some problems and you cant go out into the alleys and try to help the homless people especially at night. one other detail to the story was a month later his wallet was found with 6 hundred dollars and credit cards in it. so it is almost like he disappeared suddenly somehow... wallet was left, he would have carried his wallet with him where ever he went and he would have comeback to see his faimly in a couple days if he took off.

boy I don't know. I don't think Tony would have had the smarts to pull off killing Tony and hiding his remains good enough to the point that, 21 years later, they are still undiscovered. I think at the very least, he would have had to have some help.

sometimes people aren't as slow as they look. he could have hit him and brought some people back with him from the alley to the apartment to get rid of him. they could have put him somewhere real hidden. his body would have decomposed after a short amount of time and only bones would be left sooner or later. bodies decompose fast. why did he leave a wallet full of cash in his car? if he had planned to go off on a meditation trip wouldnt he bring his wallet? wouldnt he be back to see his family in a couple days? he had job everyday? wouldnt he take the car with him if he wanted to go on a meditation trip? wouldn't it have been a short one? we have seen skeletons tucked away in places where people dont look?
this case is mistifying and something that could happen

can someone contact adams brothers harold or his mother?

I always imagine by now Tony would have changed his ways. Like maybe he lives in a house with a family somewhere now.

can someone contact adams brothers harold or his mother?

I always imagine by now Tony would have changed his ways. Like maybe he lives in a house with a family somewhere now.



Unfortunately, Nicoge21 things don't work like that in the streets, of course that would be nice.

I think its pretty obvious this Tony dude was not all there. That whole episode when Adam's mom went to his place and found Tony there and asked him where his son was, and Tony just answered her "I'm your son," pretty much confirms he had a tenuous hold on reality. And when you have a guy who is obviously a couple of cans short of a six pack and clearly has no grip on reality you can put virtually no credence into anything he says. Thats why I think any further investigation into Adam Hecth's dissapearance should go in other directions.

As to whether or not Tony was involved, he may or may not have been. To what degree is anybody's guess. I don't believe the episode with his Mom was an act, I think he truly must have been that crazy. Because if he had done away with Adam in a sane manner, you can't get much more suspicous than living in the guy's apartment and acting insane.

And since Adam's body has never been found, it obviously took some premeditation to get rid of it, something I have to wonder if this dude is even capable of. Though its not impossible, since crazy doesn't always mean stupid.

My personal opinion is that Adam was a victim of foul play, and Tony has more knowledge about it than what he is telling, though I'm not sure he is even sane enough to comprehend what he even knew. I don't think Tony alone was involved but he had some kind of connection to it. His behaviour was just way to suspicious.

I don't think Adam voluntarily dissapeared, or from all accounts I've heard he would have notified his family somehow.

if he never met tony he'd still be here now

couple questions to ponder-
1. why was adam's wallet found in the rental car he rented with 600.00 cash and credit cards?
2. wouldn't he take his wallet with him if he was going to meditation in the woods?
3. why didnt he take the car on a trip of meditation?
4. tony did live on the streets for sometime before he met adam? he knew other people on the streets?
5. adam starting going out at night to the alleys to try to help the homeless people with tony?
6. adam could have gone back to the alleys at night trying to help homeless people again?
7. tony surely has heard something on the streets when he got back there.
8. adam loved his family and would have returned in a couple days to see them?
9. no way he would turn his back on the life he knew for 22 years?
10. he would have turned into a homeless person?
11. tony could have done foul play on him and contacted some people on the street to come back to the apartment to dispose of adam?
12. adam could have been disposed of in a alley pretty easy, could have been hidden someplace well?

I think its pretty obvious this Tony dude was not all there. That whole episode when Adam's mom went to his place and found Tony there and asked him where his son was, and Tony just answered her "I'm your son," pretty much confirms he had a tenuous hold on reality. And when you have a guy who is obviously a couple of cans short of a six pack and clearly has no grip on reality you can put virtually no credence into anything he says. Thats why I think any further investigation into Adam Hecth's dissapearance should go in other directions.

As to whether or not Tony was involved, he may or may not have been. To what degree is anybody's guess. I don't believe the episode with his Mom was an act, I think he truly must have been that crazy. Because if he had done away with Adam in a sane manner, you can't get much more suspicous than living in the guy's apartment and acting insane.

And since Adam's body has never been found, it obviously took some premeditation to get rid of it, something I have to wonder if this dude is even capable of. Though its not impossible, since crazy doesn't always mean stupid.

My personal opinion is that Adam was a victim of foul play, and Tony has more knowledge about it than what he is telling, though I'm not sure he is even sane enough to comprehend what he even knew. I don't think Tony alone was involved but he had some kind of connection to it. His behaviour was just way to suspicious.

I don't think Adam voluntarily dissapeared, or from all accounts I've heard he would have notified his family somehow.

I pretty much concur with this.


I think Tony's "involvement" may have been so miniscule that it takes on a "six degrees of separation" sort of scenario. The homeless, while often transient, still do congregate in communities over periods of time. One will often personally know or be acquainted with many other homeless people. It's not inconceivable, then, that Tony may at least know of who Adam may have run into. Coupled with his strongly alleged mental instability, though, it's really impossible to determine what exactly happened to Adam ultimately.

this is one of the rare episodes that shows somebody you cant help the homeless regardless if they are white or black that they may have some problems and you cant go out into the alleys and try to help the homless people especially at night.

No, I guess that's why those homeless shelters are always so empty.



Statistically, the majority of homeless people are not mentally ill, contrary to what's often reported in the media (although a higher percentage than the country at large are, with a figure at something like 13%) and what one often observes as he/she walks down any municipal street (you're much more likely to remember the old woman dressed in wild rags mumbling to herself and talking to trees than others exhibiting "normal" behavior, so you begin to assume there's far more homeless with mental problems than there are actually probably are). In fact, most homeless are people who have recently become incapacitated financially for whatever reason, and often go through regular, oscilating periods of residency and homelessness.

I think Adam can be absolutely commended for his efforts if helping the homeless was his ultimate aim, especially considering the far-removed circumstances he grew up in. Maybe his actions weren't completely wise, but his attitude certainly displayed a level of social consciousness far above most Americans' willingness to adopt.

that supports the point being made some people arent as slow as they look especially when it comes to committing foul play. no body know's exactly how anyone homeless acts, but when it comes to money anything can happen to anyone anywhere

if you think homeless people dont know how to club you on the head and steal from others i think your wrong.

if you think homeless people dont know how to club you on the head and steal from others i think your wrong.

No one has contested that point. I just find the stereotypes and assumptions about homeless people being beyond help--as you explicitly stated earlier--are typically based on rather unsupportable, weak claims.

Perhaps the way in which he went about helping the homeless (if that was indeed his aim) was rather unwise, but I personally think taking an attitude closer to Adam's rather than that shared by the majority of the American populace is certainly commendable.


Ultimately, none of that has anything to do with the case, however.

I wish I could believe this case would be solved, but I doubt it ever will. If Adam met with foul play, which I believe he has, in essence it was "the perfect crime". A homeless person could have murdered Adam, and subsequently moved out of the area. And practically no one will notice that person's absence since they're homeless. It's not like they left their house behind. There is not likely to be any photos or information on this person, because again, they are homeless. this person would almost be impossible to track down.

oh, I just thought of something. Did the Hechts ever offer a reward, and if so, how much? I don't remember this being talked about. I'm sure if any of the street people know, they would gladly spill guts for a few bucks.

Where are the rest of the Hecht family? there has been no updates or articles showing that he hasn't been forgotten but the missing persons page from him gets updated alot

The most common opinion people have is that he got involved with someone dangerous on the streets, was murdered, and ended up as an unidentifiable john doe. I still think Tony knows more though.

Strange how they never interviewed Tony on camera. I wonder what he really sounds/looks like now.

The car was found with the checks and wallet and some clothes. But no Adam. Very likely outcome, years later and still no sign of him = murdered.

I think the Adam Hecht case definitely illustrates the point that it can be dangerous to help others, its ashame really.

there are many well meaning people out there, who would like to be able to help those less fortunate. But sometimes they hold back out of concerns for their own safety. You just never know who might turn the screws on you and someone could end up murdered or raped. Its very unfortunate.

I think the Adam Hecht case definitely illustrates the point that it can be dangerous to help others, its ashame really.

there are many well meaning people out there, who would like to be able to help those less fortunate. But sometimes they hold back out of concerns for their own safety. You just never know who might turn the screws on you and someone could end up murdered or raped. Its very unfortunate.

I think the case illustrates an entirely different point, and that is the more homeless there are, the less likely crimes involving them directly or indirectly are going to be solved. If you work to eradicate the epidemic and the stereotypes and attitudes surrounding it, you will eventually eliminate a myriad of social problems--to include the fears associated with "helping someone."

your right megtheegg everyone can get help and there maybe people homeless that dont have bad mental problems economic problems can arise with anyone people can get downsized at business or let go. like somepeople say many people are 1 pay check away from the streets or poverty

glad to here some replies this is a disturbing case almost as if he was picked up by a beam from the sky. couple points keep coming up as i listed above in the questions about the case. why would he ever leave his wallet in a car? if he went on a trip for meditation would he not have taken the car? and returned in a couple days? no one can be sure what happened here,but his family is real and what someone said before unsolved mysteries gives a voice to the victims and that is something important for the victims

it really doesent matter if a person was homeless or not one could say that anyone being a friend to someone homeless or not should be cautious and be careful. someone with a job could lose there job and someone might want to let them stay with them for sometime.

another case that is disturbing is the case of gary grant jr. in 1984. in 1984 gary grant jr. age 7 was struck with a pipe and was found dead. this was a senseless killing that is about as senseless as anything that could happen to anyone. starngely enough he was found a couple blocks form there house in a lot. they had a suspect called bo who was a local teen in the neighborhood. no one knows what for sure could have happened? it could have been boo or someone else that struck young gary. maybe some senseless argument?. either bo did it or someone else did the dirty deed. garys family is still searching for the culprit. gary grant jr.'s father is on facebook still looking for clues...if anyone knows anything contact him

I'm sticking with the theory that Adam Hecht decided to hit the Road a la Jack Kerouac. If you remember in the segment he had been talking about meditating in the mountains to his family. And also, he had been doing some sort of "rituals" with Tony, burning his hand as some sort of test. :confused:

The only thing is that he didn't take any clothes or backpack with him or a vehicle for that matter. If he did just leave, he must have left with nothing but the clothes on his back.

I'm surprised for such a public family, that there is virtually nothing on the internet about Adam besides his missing page on the doenetwork, I believe, missing persons webpage.

His family doesn't seem to have a homepage for him or anything at all.
They seem to be a very shallow and materialistic family. I could be wrong, but just from the UM segment, they all sounded sort of shallow.

His family doesn't seem to have a homepage for him or anything at all. They seem to be a very shallow and materialistic family. I could be wrong, but just from the UM segment, they all sounded sort of shallow.

Agreed, they did come off terribly. I could see Adam, clearly having a social conscious, willingly leave them and their shallow, materialistic life behind forever.

I do think Tony knows more about the situation, however. For me, it's 50-50 that Hecht left willingly vs. foul play; of course, he could easily have left willingly and later succumbed to foul play as well.

yes i keep coming back to the point that if he was going to leave willingly he would have taken his wallet for identification? he would have gone away for a couple days? he did get along with his family and most likely would have liked to see them again? his wallet was found in a car 30 days after his date of being lost and had 600.00 cash and some credit cards. that is a odd thing because most of the time money would be gone.

do you think adam would have stayed in the woods other then a couple weeks? he may have wanted to help some people but to drop down to having no coveineces of a everday person? he was a clean cut person who looked like a everyday joe that would show up to his job. he had family he could move back in with if things got bad. in a couple weeks he would have got hungry he was no survivalist.

yes i keep coming back to the point that if he was going to leave willingly he would have taken his wallet for identification? he would have gone away for a couple days? he did get along with his family and most likely would have liked to see them again? his wallet was found in a car 30 days after his date of being lost and had 600.00 cash and some credit cards. that is a odd thing because most of the time money would be gone.

If he truly wished to leave his old life behind, he would certainly leave his ID and credit cards.

This is a case where the easy answer is to say that Tony killed Adam. That's certainly a possibility, but given that there is evidence to suggest Adam was unhappy with his life and the vapid existence of being amidst shallow phonies, leaving it all behind just can't be ruled out.

yes but? i wonder if he was so dissatisfied that he would leave his life forever? if he wanted to help other people he would have to maintain his regular life and see if he could share with them what he had? doesen't make any sense for him to leave his regular life he longer could help anyone and he never lived a life like that? people that want to help people will share what they have keep the regular 9 to 5 job.

yes but? i wonder if he was so dissatisfied that he would leave his life forever? if he wanted to help other people he would have to maintain his regular life and see if he could share with them what he had? doesen't make any sense for him to leave his regular life he longer could help anyone and he never lived a life like that? people that want to help people will share what they have keep the regular 9 to 5 job.

I don't pretend to know what was in Adam's head. There's no doubt that he could have helped people without walking away from his life, but that doesn't mean he could have felt otherwise.

seems to me philanthropists help others but consistently contributing to them.

If he truly wished to leave his old life behind, he would certainly leave his ID and credit cards.

This is a case where the easy answer is to say that Tony killed Adam. That's certainly a possibility, but given that there is evidence to suggest Adam was unhappy with his life and the vapid existence of being amidst shallow phonies, leaving it all behind just can't be ruled out.

It's very possible. When I was a kid, there was a homeless man who lived in a cave like structure not too far from here. We thought he was either down on his luck or mentally ill. The man lived in that cave for as long as I can remember. Never once did he hurt anybody. In fact, he was a very nice man if one bothered to talk to him. Someone from the county caught wind of his living in a cave and had him committed. Apparently, living the life you choose makes you insane, who knew? Anyway, that's when we found out that he came from a very well-off family and that he had been a professor before he decided to walk away from everything and live the life he wanted to live. He left behind everything to go off and live in a cave. He had a house, parents, siblings and he walked away from it all. He even took a new name because he just wanted rid of the materialistic side of himself.

To me,to solve this case you have to ask the obvious questions:

1) Was/is Adam gay or bisexual? This could explain his relationship w/ Tony and why he had disappeared in the past.
There were several serial killers of gays in Southern California around that time and earlier,so maybe he fell victim to one of them.
2) Why is Adam's family so obviously detached from him? The lack of a web site, the shallow responses given in the interview, the fact that they don't seem to have private investigators looking for him,etc.
Their affect during the show was all wrong for a family where a loved one was missing.
3) What do the police think about this situation? Do THEY still consider this to be a missing persons case?
4) Even if Adam wanted to go "Jack Kerouac" would he have done so for so long? "Walking the Earth" has limited appeal to most people after a short while,especially after changes in the weather or an encounter w/ a dangerous or desperate person.
If he legitimately walked away from his life,would he have remained gone?
5) Have any municipalities in SoCal or nearby reported finding the remains of White male matching Adam's description?

To me these questions and a few more need to be answered for this case to be solved.

If I remember correctly his car was found unlocked with the car keys in the injection and a pocketbook full of money. To me it seems like somebody wanted people to believe that Adam Hecht gave up his life and changed his identity.
On the other hand Adam did a lot of odd and strange things so it is also highly possible that he wanted to change lifestyle and disappeared. If he is dead now either by foul play, accident or suicide he has maybe become a John Doe somewhere.

Even if Adam wanted to go "Jack Kerouac" would he have done so for so long? "Walking the Earth" has limited appeal to most people after a short while,especially after changes in the weather or an encounter w/ a dangerous or desperate person.


Always nice to see a Jack Kerouac reference on these boards :)

I'm almost 99% sure Adam is deceased. It doesn't make sense that he would suddenly disappear. If he was alive, he'd probably be seen with Tony. The fact that Tony was alone in Adam's apartment raises a red flag. First off, I doubt Adam would run off to some obscure location. Although, Adam might have been disillusioned with his rich lifestyle; I doubt Adam would have become homeless himself. He seemed more interested in using his resources to help the homeless. Also, Adam still had his apartment while he was helping the homeless. That doesn't sound like someone who was about to embark on some journey.

It's sad that Adam, whom, seemed genuinely interested in helping those less fortunate than himself, possibly succumbed to death. Adam appeared to be naive about the dangers lurking in the areas he and Tony frequented.

To me,to solve this case you have to ask the obvious questions:

1) Was/is Adam gay or bisexual? This could explain his relationship w/ Tony and why he had disappeared in the past.
There were several serial killers of gays in Southern California around that time and earlier,so maybe he fell victim to one of them.

That's a great question. But what bothers me about that is that Adam could have just as easily found someone in his own socio-economic group to have a relationship with (especially in that area), so why seek someone in the homeless community? Unless, of course, he had some fears about someone in his family's "circle" finding out and perhaps the possible disapproval that would follow.

2) Why is Adam's family so obviously detached from him? The lack of a web site, the shallow responses given in the interview, the fact that they don't seem to have private investigators looking for him,etc.
Their affect during the show was all wrong for a family where a loved one was missing.

I personally try not to put too much stock into an individual or family's demeanor during interviews. People deal with grief in such individual ways that I think it's literally impossible to make any sort of hard conclusion about how they "really" feel about the tragedy. To use other UM cases as an example, there are many who felt Colleen Ritter was too rigid in her interview in light of her parents being murdered, even though she was obviously not responsible for it. The Darlie Routier "silly string" incident is a classic example of this as well, IMO. And her guilt/innocence is still hotly contested.

There are many missing or murdered people who don't have websites set up by their families for one reason or another, and I really don't think that reason is anyone's business but the family's. There's also no way of knowing whether or not the Hechts hired private investigators on the case, either.

3) What do the police think about this situation? Do THEY still consider this to be a missing persons case?

The California Department of Justice considers him a missing person. Contact information for the Beverly Hills Police Department is included on this page, so I would assume that's how they categorize him as well:

http://dojapp.doj.ca.gov/missing/detail.asp?FCN=2428916630017

4) Even if Adam wanted to go "Jack Kerouac" would he have done so for so long? "Walking the Earth" has limited appeal to most people after a short while,especially after changes in the weather or an encounter w/ a dangerous or desperate person.

Excellent point. That's why I tend to think he was killed a short time after he became involved in that community.

5) Have any municipalities in SoCal or nearby reported finding the remains of White male matching Adam's description?

Perhaps. There are some posters here who regularly page through U/I profiles on doenetwork.com and other such sites looking for possible matches. Considering SoCal is absolutely filled with affluent young white males who are in good physical condition and health, however, Adam may fit hundreds of those profiles. That's not to say his remains haven't been discovered and are just waiting to be identified, of course, but the chance that they haven't been recovered is just as likely.

It's so INCREDIBLY obvious that Tony had something to do with Adam's disapperence.

And the last line makes it even more suspicious: "spend some time on the street...you'll find where he is..."

It's so INCREDIBLY obvious that Tony had something to do with Adam's disapperence.

And the last line makes it even more suspicious: "spend some time on the street...you'll find where he is..."

I don't think anyone disputes Tony had "something" to do with the disappearance. The dispute is whether the something was nefarious, like killing him, or simply facilitating a lifestyle change.

To me,to solve this case you have to ask the obvious questions:

[...]

2) Why is Adam's family so obviously detached from him? The lack of a web site, the shallow responses given in the interview, the fact that they don't seem to have private investigators looking for him,etc.
Their affect during the show was all wrong for a family where a loved one was missing.

[...]

To me these questions and a few more need to be answered for this case to be solved.

MegTheEgg's point re: their demeanor, is a highly valid one.

That said, one reason they might not be searching for him now is that he did contact them - perhaps something along the lines of "stop looking for me, i hate you phonies and your life and never want to see you again" or something similar that the family would find embarrassing. I have absolutely no evidence to suggest this is the case; merely stating one possible answer.

While I think it plausible that Adam could have gone off and started a new life, I do think that he would have at least informed his family and/or LE to stop looking. After all, it's not a crime for an adult to disappear. If no such word has been received, Adam is likely deceased, although whether at the hands of Tony or later, I cannot say.

It's so INCREDIBLY obvious that Tony had something to do with Adam's disapperence.

And the last line makes it even more suspicious: "spend some time on the street...you'll find where he is..."

I think that remark...if it really was said...was the ramblings of a mentally ill homeless man and nothing more.

Given that Adam's family apparent is wealthy, had they pushed the situation,Tony would have been arrested and extensively questioned by the police had they really considered him a suspect.
I think that Adam and Tony had an intimate "relationship" (no mention was made of a girlfriend or for that matter a boyfriend in Adam's life) and that's why Tony was staying w/ Adam.I think also that there was maybe a drug or alcohol angle in this that may have impaired Adam's thinking.

This could explain why Adam would be down to the Rampart area of Downtown LA at night looking for Tony and handing out food and clothing to the homeless.
Unfortunately, this type of generosity can be dangerous in the DAY TIME much less at night. And if he was either drunk or high,he would have been an easy target for predators on the street.

Finally,if Adam was gay or bi (again this was strongly implied in the segment) he could have been cruising or cottaging w/ strangers. This would have to be a high risk activity and may have contributed to his disappearance.

Finally,if Adam was gay or bi (again this was strongly implied in the segment) he could have been cruising or cottaging w/ strangers.

:confused: I never got that impression at all. What specifically was an implication that Adam was gay or bisexual?

:confused: I never got that impression at all. What specifically was an implication that Adam was gay or bisexual?

I was wondering this too. I got the impression he invited Tony into his home because Tony was homeless. I think if there were suspicions about the nature of their relationship, it would have been brought up, wouldn't it? Course UM does leave things out, though.

I thought it was naive and dumb by Adam to let Tony stay at his apartment and also to take part in those rituals. Surely it should have occured to Adam that his mother wouldn't have wanted it and also it would have put her at risk (which it almost did as we saw in the segment he tried to kiss her)

I can certainly picture Adam being very idealistic and naive and deciding to leave his rich lifestyle behind for a brief time. But in keeping with that character, I also see him very quickly becoming disillusioned with life on the streets and running for home, probably within a matter of days. I've worked one on one with the homeless for quite some time, and it is not an easy lifestyle. Mental illness and substance abuse run rampant, and violence among the population is ridiculously common. I've seem some of my clients behave as sweetly as can be one day, and snap into violent fits the next, with little to no provocation.

Sadly, I think Adam most likely got into a situation he couldn't control, and that he most likely did not make it out alive.

"And those that do have televisions, addresses and phone numbers tend to avoid the homeless at all costs. When was the last time you had an in depth face to face conversation with a homeless person?"

During the time that I was traveling the east coast on foot, I actually encountered a LOT of VERY kind, honest homeless people that were willing to genuinely help me out and make sure I was safe. It's a massive stereotype that all homeless people are dangerous and crazy, and I believe that if more people took the time to get to know some of them, they'd see that.

It took them a month to find his car on a Beverley Hills sidestreet?

I never got that impression at all. What specifically was an implication that Adam was gay or bisexual?

I didn't either from watching the actual segment, but the more I thought over the segment and what happened the more it seemed a possibility.

Tony seemed to be quite a lowlife. Whether mentally ill or not who knows, but since he was into strange ritual stuff he obviously had very little going on upstairs.

Maybe Tony and Adam got into some strange ritual with a bunch of other "street" friends (like a sex orgy) and Adam couldn't get out of it.

Tony is the key to where Adam is, in the postscript to the story. Harold Hecht met Tony again and asked where Adam was and Tony Replied That if Harold would only spend some time out on the streets with him then he might be able to shed some light on the subject. I can't believe they just let Tony away without further questioning him, his behavior (if the broadcast was accurate) when Harold visited him at the house looked suspicious, it was like Adam was there and he was hiding something about him.

Tony is the key to where Adam is, in the postscript to the story. Harold Hecht met Tony again and asked where Adam was and Tony Replied That if Harold would only spend some time out on the streets with him then he might be able to shed some light on the subject. I can't believe they just let Tony away without further questioning him, his behavior (if the broadcast was accurate) when Harold visited him at the house looked suspicious, it was like Adam was there and he was hiding something about him.


I think this is another case where it is important to take into consideration the time-frame this segment was filmed and aired. mental illness was still very misunderstood in this time. it is like how quickly people jumped to satanic cult activity. Tony was likely a paranoid schizophrenic and he wouldn't want to let anyone in the door. I suspect Adam ran into someone on the street or saw something he shouldn't have. If Tony had any involvement, I think it was unintentional or indirect

:confused: I never got that impression at all. What specifically was an implication that Adam was gay or bisexual?

I can't give any specific reasons why but I got that impression from the segment as well.

I have to admit that I felt the same about Adam (in the way he was portrayed). I certainly have nothing to back it up and apologize if that isn't the case.

To be honest if I was Harold (Adam's brother) I would rally up 2-3 of my friends to abduct Tony and torture him until he tells what happened to Adam. Adam was so good to Tony, and for Tony to totally betray him like that is just so infuriating.

Maybe Tony was more cunning than the dopey character that he was portrayed. The UM depiction made him seem a little stupid but in reality he may have been extremely streetwise.

Either way though, he's a complete b4$t#&d!

I think that Adam left on his own, if Tony had killed him i'm sure he would have been found by now and identified.

To be honest if I was Harold (Adam's brother) I would rally up 2-3 of my friends to abduct Tony and torture him until he tells what happened to Adam. Adam was so good to Tony, and for Tony to totally betray him like that is just so infuriating.


Than you'd be in jail for kidnapping and torture, and unable to look for your brother smart guy.

Maybe Adam was just brainwashed. It happens more than you would think. One of my old friends is now in a cult.

Adam's sister Rebecca, who was interviewed on UM, is on facebook. Perhaps someone could ask her if there is more to Adam's story than we saw on UM.

This is another case that has troubled me for years.

Being fairly high profile people I was surprised at Adam's parents' behavior. I think what was going on is that Adam had rejected his family's idea of what his lifestyle should be (meaning living in somewhat luxurious circumstances) and spending time with people they would consider undesirables.

This was also over 20 years ago and gay people were less accepted than they are today (it was also the height of the AIDS crisis). I think it's very likely that Adam and Tony were lovers and this was never going to be accepted by Adam's parents. However I did detect grief in his siblings when they were interviewed.

Unfortunately I suspect he is either dead now or has adopted a new identity.

This is another case that has troubled me for years.

Being fairly high profile people I was surprised at Adam's parents' behavior. I think what was going on is that Adam had rejected his family's idea of what his lifestyle should be (meaning living in somewhat luxurious circumstances) and spending time with people they would consider undesirables.

This was also over 20 years ago and gay people were less accepted than they are today (it was also the height of the AIDS crisis). I think it's very likely that Adam and Tony were lovers and this was never going to be accepted by Adam's parents. However I did detect grief in his siblings when they were interviewed.

Unfortunately I suspect he is either dead now or has adopted a new identity.
I think so,too.Though I lean more twds dead,considering his car was found w $600 in it.could have been a set-up by him,but I kind of doubt it.IMO he went looking for other gay ppl,or was to meet someone,and he met up w the wrong person.I hope the ppl in the area where his car was found were investigated.
when his mother used the word relationship,I got the feeling she was trying to say he and tony were lovers.and the part where she said she didn't care what he'd done or been doing...I take it she was speaking of his gay lifestyle.

I think so,too.Though I lean more twds dead,considering his car was found w $600 in it.could have been a set-up by him,but I kind of doubt it.IMO he went looking for other gay ppl,or was to meet someone,and he met up w the wrong person.I hope the ppl in the area where his car was found were investigated.
when his mother used the word relationship,I got the feeling she was trying to say he and tony were lovers.and the part where she said she didn't care what he'd done or been doing...I take it she was speaking of his gay lifestyle.

Good point. I had forgotten about the $600. However while I could take in what Mrs. Hecht was saying, I didn't get the impression that she "accepted" his lifestyle at all.

There has to be a lot more that went on that was not shown to the viewers, or even outside the family for that matter.

Is there any evidence that Adam Hecht was gay? I don't recall hearing that, but I suppose it's a possibility.

Is there any evidence that Adam Hecht was gay? I don't recall hearing that, but I suppose it's a possibility.

Zero evidence presented on the segment. Just another instance of people reading too much in to things and trying to twist statements made on the program to fit their pre-concieved "theories".

well,if you happen to know someone who is gay,I can tell you his behavior fit that pattern very well (the gay lifestyle),that's all I can say.

"Lifestyle" is really an encompassing term. Adam did not live the lifestyle his family, IMHO, would have preferred. He worked as a tennis instructor and was apparently not going to college, he socialized with the homeless people, etc. And maybe he preferred men over women, but that's not really the main issue.

His sexuality rather than being a pre-conceived theory is really just one piece of the puzzle, and definitely not the largest. Everything needs to be considered and/or looked at.

"Lifestyle" is really an encompassing term. Adam did not live the lifestyle his family, IMHO, would have preferred. He worked as a tennis instructor and was apparently not going to college, he socialized with the homeless people, etc. And maybe he preferred men over women, but that's not really the main issue.

His sexuality rather than being a pre-conceived theory is really just one piece of the puzzle, and definitely not the largest. Everything needs to be considered and/or looked at.
I agree,and that's why I say I hope they looked really hard at the ppl in the area where his car was found.he parked there for a reason..likely to meet with someone in the neighborhood,or close by;that would seem to be the smoking gun,imo.he left a significant amt of money and his wallet in his car...he had planned to come back soon,it would appear.

well,if you happen to know someone who is gay,I can tell you his behavior fit that pattern very well (the gay lifestyle),that's all I can say.

WTF?!? I don't see anything about that in that story.

The issue was that he was a rich kid from a wealthy family and he was hanging out with a homeless guy. He became interested in helping the homeless and he seemed to be almost ashamed of his wealth.

He probably wanted to help but someone took it the wrong way and either robbed him or beat him up.

Whatever his sexuality is, was not obvious either way and I don't see how it played any bit in this story. If someone draws that conclusion from this story, I think you are really reaching.

Just because a male invites another male to live with him doesn't mean that either male is homosexual. I think people are looking too far into matters just from watching the segment. Of course, I would hope the investigators themselves pursued many avenues.

Whether of not Adam was gay or straight, he deserves to be found and is hopefully alright.

Hanging out with street people on the street could had been how Adam's family wanted to see his "cruising".

"Cruising" for sex is usually in public places with anonymous partners. I feel like that is more likely what Adam was doing rather than just enjoying the company of street people at night.

Cruising is also a high risk activity, this is how many homosexual serial killers attain victims. Its conceivable that his could had happened to Adam.

Hanging out with street people on the street could had been how Adam's family wanted to see his "cruising".

"Cruising" for sex is usually in public places with anonymous partners. I feel like that is more likely what Adam was doing rather than just enjoying the company of street people at night.

Cruising is also a high risk activity, this is how many homosexual serial killers attain victims. Its conceivable that his could had happened to Adam.

Where do you people come up with this? There was ZERO, I repeat, ZERO information about Adam's sexual orientation in this story.

It's really disturbing to me that some people are making this leap. A rich guy befriends a homeless guy and the conclusion is that he is "cruising" for gay sex?!?

Wow. Just wow.

no matter why he was there,the main thing is he didn't intend to be gone long,as evidenced by leaving his wallet and keys in the car.whatever happened,happened quickly,and no robbery was ever intended,it appears.
so whatever happened,happened close by,and I don't know how closely this was investigated,but it seems to me,just like many other cases,if they would push harder for witnesses (it may be too late now,of course),it might could be solved.
i just can't beleive his car sat there that long w keys and cash in it,parking tickets covering it,and no one around there knows a darn thing.no one even tried to steal the car or money,they just wanted it to seem they didn't know anything about it.just weird.

Where do you people come up with this? There was ZERO, I repeat, ZERO information about Adam's sexual orientation in this story.

It's really disturbing to me that some people are making this leap. A rich guy befriends a homeless guy and the conclusion is that he is "cruising" for gay sex?!?

Wow. Just wow.

Todd, you are correct there was Zero information about his orientation, but one could make the inference that he was homosexual.

Are we only to discuss these cases based on what UM presented as a form of prime time entertainment? Or is digging deeper into the possibilities not allowed on this forum?

Hanging out with street people on the street could had been how Adam's family wanted to see his "cruising".

"Cruising" for sex is usually in public places with anonymous partners. I feel like that is more likely what Adam was doing rather than just enjoying the company of street people at night.

Cruising is also a high risk activity, this is how many homosexual serial killers attain victims. Its conceivable that his could had happened to Adam.

This is really a major jump to conclusions. I don't see any evidence of "cruising" in the story unless of course there were significant items left out, but we don't have any evidence.

As I recall (possibly incorrectly) the one area they showed appeared to be some sort of camp for homeless people which is fairly common in large cities.

On a sideline, I happen to be gay, and am familiar with the "cruising" reference, however I don't see any connection to Tony and "cruising."

Where do you people come up with this? There was ZERO, I repeat, ZERO information about Adam's sexual orientation in this story.

It's really disturbing to me that some people are making this leap. A rich guy befriends a homeless guy and the conclusion is that he is "cruising" for gay sex?!?

Wow. Just wow.

I agree with your statement re: orientation but I still believe it's a possibility to be examined. I certainly don't believe there's any evidence of "cruising" in the story. It sounds as if some of this is predicated on the premise that all gay men "cruise" for sex which is incorrect.

Todd, you are correct there was Zero information about his orientation, but one could make the inference that he was homosexual.

Are we only to discuss these cases based on what UM presented as a form of prime time entertainment? Or is digging deeper into the possibilities not allowed on this forum?

LI_UM-Fan: You are correct, we can and should be able to entertain all kinds of theories on this site. I just had an issue with what I feel is a huge leap to say that Adam was "cruising" for gay sex. (Thank you NDAlum2003 for saying it much better than I did.)

I apologize if I offended you, LI_UM_Fan. Yes we should leave all options open, but offering it as a suggestion and making it sound matter-of-fact are two different things. I took you to be saying something matter-of-fact that isn't, so if that wasn't your intention that is my fault.

To me, it was like saying "Tim McClure was driving around looking for his mom's purse, but actually he was 'cruising' because that's what gay people do and he was hiding it from his mom." Could Adam Hecht have been gay? Sure. But again, there is no evidence in the story that he was (or that he wasn't). That's all.


This is really a major jump to conclusions. I don't see any evidence of "cruising" in the story unless of course there were significant items left out, but we don't have any evidence.

As I recall (possibly incorrectly) the one area they showed appeared to be some sort of camp for homeless people which is fairly common in large cities.

On a sideline, I happen to be gay, and am familiar with the "cruising" reference, however I don't see any connection to Tony and "cruising."



I agree with your statement re: orientation but I still believe it's a possibility to be examined. I certainly don't believe there's any evidence of "cruising" in the story. It sounds as if some of this is predicated on the premise that all gay men "cruise" for sex which is incorrect.

Thanks for explaining what I was trying to, but couldn't. :D I agree with everything you said.

did it ever occur to anyone that maybe tony and adam met before? the segment kinda portrays a love at first sight type of meeting. however, maybe thats what the brother saw, but what if adam knew him from his past? Maybe did drugs with him, sexual encounter? Heck, maybe tony knew something emberassing of him.

did it ever occur to anyone that maybe tony and adam met before? the segment kinda portrays a love at first sight type of meeting. however, maybe thats what the brother saw, but what if adam knew him from his past? Maybe did drugs with him, sexual encounter? Heck, maybe tony knew something emberassing of him.

Yes, and let's say he did. In Adam's shoes, meeting my parents would be one of the last things I'd be wanting to have Tony do. It's obvious that Adam's parents would likely not approve of Tony as a peer of any sort.

I think the segment also seeked to sensationalize the situation as they do with many of the cases.

After reading some of the comments, I thought I'd throw my two cents in too. There's an old saying that "loose lips sink ships". I don't believe that Tony did anything to Adam and then again, that is just my belief. I think maybe Tony divulged some information about Adam (i.e. him being rich, him being a friend, etc) to some other homeless individuals and maybe one of them used Tony's association with Adam to possibly set him up. Then again, this is just my theory.

did anyone else kind of find it weird adams real life mom played herself in the segment?????

Remember, we dont really know too much about tony, since UM never contacted him. the only thing we understand of tony is from the viewpoint of an upper class beverly hills white family. They would natrually probably already look down upon him even without knowing him........

did anyone else kind of find it weird adams real life mom played herself in the segment?????

Remember, we dont really know too much about tony, since UM never contacted him. the only thing we understand of tony is from the viewpoint of an upper class beverly hills white family. They would natrually probably already look down upon him even without knowing him........


Not really, she struck me as egotistic.

I agree with the second paragraph, you said it well.

After reading some of the comments, I thought I'd throw my two cents in too. There's an old saying that "loose lips sink ships". I don't believe that Tony did anything to Adam and then again, that is just my belief. I think maybe Tony divulged some information about Adam (i.e. him being rich, him being a friend, etc) to some other homeless individuals and maybe one of them used Tony's association with Adam to possibly set him up. Then again, this is just my theory.


I actually think that it's a really plausible theory.

Charli-Ann

In any event,I suspect Tony wasn't nearly as dense as he was portrayed.A bit on the strange side,perhaps,but being homeless didn't mean he was necessarily far out there.

I don't quite believe Tony tried to make out with Adams mom.

I believe it is possible that someone from the streets did bring harm to Adam, but perhaps it was someone he fed a few times, who pumped Tony for info and committed the crime themselves.

What would be truly bizzare is if Adam was planning to give everything he had away, and his own FAMILY did him in because they knew it would be easy to cover up considering who he had been hanging around with, but just a side theory.

Happy New Year All!

I think that adam could have met someone else on the street or was a victim of a random act of violence. Adam's family and UM only had tony to center their case upon, but it is evident that they knew little to nothing about tony and that tony knows little to nothing about adam's disappearance. Two completely different types of people mixing together that clearly live in completely different worlds. I feel bad for adam if he was trying to genuinely help and was a victim of this circumstance.

It would have been interesting if UM could have interviewed tony to hear his thoughts.

i bet you he's alive somewhere

[QUOTE=Blackout805]i bet you he's alive somewhere[

by now after all these year? doubtful, but you never know. he could have gotten caught up in the streets and hooked on drugs or something. and maybe just was too ashamed to go back home. I think he was probably a victim though. the streets will eat you if you don't know how to survive. My guess is that he wasn't too street savy and didn't know what he was doing out there and some random person killed him. or he killed himself in some manner.

I think something terrible happened to him. I mean, over TWENTY years? No way. And as an L.A. resident, there are very unsavory parts that you would not want to be walking in, especially all alone at night. If Tony didn't hurt him, I think someone on the streets did OR the street life did him in.

I never believed that Adam disappeared willingly.

I know that A LOT of panhandlers and such aren't as poor as they'd like you to believe. I think that was probably the case with Tony. I think that his appearance that he wasn't all together there mentally was just an act. I think he was smarter than he let on. I was always bothered by the fact that he wouldn't let anyone in Adam's apartment after Adam disappeared and they had to kick him out, and also by the fact of his statement that they'd find out what happened to Adam if they "spent some time on the streets." I think that Tony was just waiting around for someone naive to dupe, and sadly, Adam walked into the trap.

I also fear Adam might have been raped. He was probably viewed as "a catch" and was nicely dressed.

Sorry, I wish I could believe that Adam was living safely somewhere, but I've got a bad feeling whenever I think about what happened to him.

I never believed that Adam disappeared willingly.

I know that A LOT of panhandlers and such aren't as poor as they'd like you to believe. I think that was probably the case with Tony. I think that his appearance that he wasn't all together there mentally was just an act. I think he was smarter than he let on. I was always bothered by the fact that he wouldn't let anyone in Adam's apartment after Adam disappeared and they had to kick him out, and also by the fact of his statement that they'd find out what happened to Adam if they "spent some time on the streets." I think that Tony was just waiting around for someone naive to dupe, and sadly, Adam walked into the trap.

I also fear Adam might have been raped. He was probably viewed as "a catch" and was nicely dressed.

Sorry, I wish I could believe that Adam was living safely somewhere, but I've got a bad feeling whenever I think about what happened to him.

well if it was my brother, yes i would spend some time on the streets asking everyone i could if they knew anything. Heck, when the brother saw tony a year later, why didnt he risk geting his cashmere Versace sweater a little dirty and physically confront tony? Heck, there is even a chance that tony may not really know himself....

well if it was my brother, yes i would spend some time on the streets asking everyone i could if they knew anything. Heck, when the brother saw tony a year later, why didnt he risk geting his cashmere Versace sweater a little dirty and physically confront tony? Heck, there is even a chance that tony may not really know himself....
You know I get the same drift. I don't want to say that the brother is a liar or acuse him of not caring or anything like that. I don't know how that would feel. but I just get a sense that the segment painted tony as the bad guy from the start. I'm not saying tony is innocent or guilty, but it didn't seem like adam's family knew anything about him. it looked as if they met him once or twice and didn't really want anything to do with him at all. almost as if they were disgusted by him and that he was a monster not a human. Based on the segment the family is trying to blame adam's disappearance completely on tony and they aren't giving any other details of the circumstances of why adam was doing what he was doing other than he wanted to help and he was a nice guy.

If there were any evidence that tony was guilty of something the cops would have charged him right? I also find it strange that adam's vehicle and wallet were found with cash in the wallet. again if tony or another homeless person were looking to take advantage of adam maybe they would have taken his car and wallet? or at least the cash since it couldn't be traced? I think this is a simple case of a guy that got in over his head trying to help people initially, but got sucked into the street lifestyle in the process.

You know I get the same drift. I don't want to say that the brother is a liar or acuse him of not caring or anything like that. I don't know how that would feel. but I just get a sense that the segment painted tony as the bad guy from the start. I'm not saying tony is innocent or guilty, but it didn't seem like adam's family knew anything about him. it looked as if they met him once or twice and didn't really want anything to do with him at all. almost as if they were disgusted by him and that he was a monster not a human. Based on the segment the family is trying to blame adam's disappearance completely on tony and they aren't giving any other details of the circumstances of why adam was doing what he was doing other than he wanted to help and he was a nice guy.

If there were any evidence that tony was guilty of something the cops would have charged him right? I also find it strange that adam's vehicle and wallet were found with cash in the wallet. again if tony or another homeless person were looking to take advantage of adam maybe they would have taken his car and wallet? or at least the cash since it couldn't be traced? I think this is a simple case of a guy that got in over his head trying to help people initially, but got sucked into the street lifestyle in the process.

I'm willing to wager that most homeless people probably don't have drivers licenses. At the very least, a homeless person driving around in a nice car would arouse suspicion.

You have to remember that Tony more or less was groping Martine Hecht in the hallway. I'm sure that didn't endear him to the family. Plus, I can't imagine anyone having a deep desire to be around someone that smelled bad and was hideously unkempt.

Perhaps the family didn't know of any other details of why Adam was helping Tony, or there weren't any. They seemed baffled that Adam would go to great lengths to help a complete stranger, and I can understand that. I would imagine that a fair share of homeless people have been involved in crime at some point in their life, so I can see why they didn't give Tony a big hug the first time they met him.

I know the Hechts have been sort of branded as being Beverly Hills snobs, but for the most part, they seem to be a nice family. I don't think they wished bad on Tony, I think they just wanted Adam back.

I'm willing to wager that most homeless people probably don't have drivers licenses. At the very least, a homeless person driving around in a nice car would arouse suspicion.

You have to remember that Tony more or less was groping Martine Hecht in the hallway. I'm sure that didn't endear him to the family. Plus, I can't imagine anyone having a deep desire to be around someone that smelled bad and was hideously unkempt.

Perhaps the family didn't know of any other details of why Adam was helping Tony, or there weren't any. They seemed baffled that Adam would go to great lengths to help a complete stranger, and I can understand that. I would imagine that a fair share of homeless people have been involved in crime at some point in their life, so I can see why they didn't give Tony a big hug the first time they met him.

I know the Hechts have been sort of branded as being Beverly Hills snobs, but for the most part, they seem to be a nice family. I don't think they wished bad on Tony, I think they just wanted Adam back.


I see your point and you may be 100% correct. I don't know what I would do if my son brought a homeless person to my house. I would want to know what my son was doing that is for sure, but I can't say i would welcome the person in my home with open arms until I was presented with that situation and learned more about it.

To add to my point which was just my opinion, the UM segment is based off of adam's family perception of tony. We don't have tony's side to the story and he was never charged by police so we have to assume that he is not guilty of any crime. and no one really knows why adam was doing what he was doing because it appears that the family didn't support his actions (of helping tony/homless)or want anything to do with it until after he disappeared.

I just don't know what to make of this segment. I'm not being critical of his family at all, i'm just saying their view does not give the real story if you ask me which is why they are looking for more details. they didn't want anything to do with tony and based on adam's brother's account tony didn't want anything to do with helping them once adam disappeared. the real story can only be found with the people who were actually around adam when he disappeared.

as far as the car yes maybe tony couldn't drive i think you are right about that, but more than likely that was because he was partially blind not because he was homeless. I would venture to say that there are some homeless that can drive and some that can't. but his wallet and cash being found may elminate robbery. I don't know that tony is guilty of any crime against adam he appears to be a legit friend of adam, but he probably knows more about what may have happened to adam(or at least could help). At the very least if tony was part of the UM segment we would have had a better understanding of what adam was doing before he disappeared. I think he is just the only person that the family knew of so they naturally pulled him into the story, but for some reason they haven't spoken to him other than one time when adam's brother ran into him on a chance encounter.

I see your point and you may be 100% correct. I don't know what I would do if my son brought a homeless person to my house. I would want to know what my son was doing that is for sure, but I can't say i would welcome the person in my home with open arms until I was presented with that situation and learned more about it.

To add to my point which was just my opinion, the UM segment is based off of adam's family perception of tony. We don't have tony's side to the story and he was never charged by police so we have to assume that he is not guilty of any crime. and no one really knows why adam was doing what he was doing because it appears that the family didn't support his actions (of helping tony/homless)or want anything to do with it until after he disappeared.

I just don't know what to make of this segment. I'm not being critical of his family at all, i'm just saying their view does not give the real story if you ask me which is why they are looking for more details. they didn't want anything to do with tony and based on adam's brother's account tony didn't want anything to do with helping them once adam disappeared. the real story can only be found with the people who were actually around adam when he disappeared.

as far as the car yes maybe tony couldn't drive i think you are right about that, but more than likely that was because he was partially blind not because he was homeless. I would venture to say that there are some homeless that can drive and some that can't. but his wallet and cash being found may elminate robbery. I don't know that tony is guilty of any crime against adam he appears to be a legit friend of adam, but he probably knows more about what may have happened to adam(or at least could help). At the very least if tony was part of the UM segment we would have had a better understanding of what adam was doing before he disappeared. I think he is just the only person that the family knew of so they naturally pulled him into the story, but for some reason they haven't spoken to him other than one time when adam's brother ran into him on a chance encounter.

one thing that i found weird was the so called first encounter between adam and tony at the restaurant. How many people base a friendship or relationship out of such a random encounter between 2 strangers? Similarly, maybe adam and tony had some sort of history together before that. Did adam have any connections to people where his car was located? I mean for myself, my wallet is my third hand- it goes with me everywhere.

Finally, i wonder what ever happened to Tony? I wish they interviewed him or even tried to find him. He might be the best or most intriguing interview not to ever happen on the show.

Did adam have any connections to people where his car was located?


I wonder about that,too.it appears he was attacked or abducted very publicly,and imo,they need to question the n-borhood more thouroughly,if they didn't before.I base this on the fact that even though his car and contents,inc. wallet,etc.,were left there for quite awhile,no one wanted to touch it or go near it.Of course it's always possible his car was moved from the original abduction spot;still,you would think that at the least,the money would be taken.it appears someone worked very hard at making it seem adam just walked away from his car.JMO.

He probably met some weirdo's through "Tony"...... Im not trying to be funny, but when they reenacted the Adam/Tony relationship, I used to think, ok was this upper class woman automatically intimidated by her son hanging out with such a different "class" of people..... and so her reception of this whole friendship maybe misunderstood and exaggerated?

He probably met some weirdo's through "Tony"...... Im not trying to be funny, but when they reenacted the Adam/Tony relationship, I used to think, ok was this upper class woman automatically intimidated by her son hanging out with such a different "class" of people..... and so her reception of this whole friendship maybe misunderstood and exaggerated?
I think that "may" be the case. I don't know. but when I watched the segment originally I know that if I were adam I would have felt bad with the way my mom was talking about tony right in front of him. again it may have been changed in the reenactment because of the negative feelings that the family naturally had towards tony after they lost their loved one. i think that may be what happened and it might not have been exactly like that in real life. i think adam at first wanted to help and when his family didn't approve of his actions it made him rebel and drift further into the situation than was necessary. Naturally adam's family wern't following him into the streets to see what he was doing because they didn't want to. I'm not blaming them at all, just stating my opinion on what happened. it was a sad story and rightfully should be profiled on UM to help find him.

i also read that adam had before disappeared before and returned on occasion... basically, he must have ran into bad company

I think he is just the only person that the family knew of so they naturally pulled him into the story, but for some reason they haven't spoken to him other than one time when adam's brother ran into him on a chance encounter.

No. You see, that's where you're wrong. Adam's family actually tried on several occasions to talk to Tony, but he was evasive and unhelpful.

On one occasion, someone, I think it was Adam's brother, knocked on the door of the apartment looking for Adam. Tony refused to open the door all the way, and only spoke for a brief moment before closing the door. And that was Adam's apartment, which Tony was living in, before being kicked out by the family.

On another occasion, Martine knocked on the door of Adam's apartment, and Tony came out to grope her, forcing Martine to semi-slap him to get him away. Later, she says "I just want to know where my son is. Where my son is, where is he?" At which point, Tony says that "I'm your son." Martine, realizing that Tony is being evasive, leaves.

I just feel that the Hechts are judged too harshly at times. I mean, after all, Martine invited Tony into her home and gave him a meal of cheeseburgers. That's kind and generous, isn't it?

No. You see, that's where you're wrong. Adam's family actually tried on several occasions to talk to Tony, but he was evasive and unhelpful.

On one occasion, someone, I think it was Adam's brother, knocked on the door of the apartment looking for Adam. Tony refused to open the door all the way, and only spoke for a brief moment before closing the door. And that was Adam's apartment, which Tony was living in, before being kicked out by the family.

On another occasion, Martine knocked on the door of Adam's apartment, and Tony came out to grope her, forcing Martine to semi-slap him to get him away. Later, she says "I just want to know where my son is. Where my son is, where is he?" At which point, Tony says that "I'm your son." Martine, realizing that Tony is being evasive, leaves.

I just feel that the Hechts are judged too harshly at times. I mean, after all, Martine invited Tony into her home and gave him a meal of cheeseburgers. That's kind and generous, isn't it?

I think DallasTexan meant after Tony was evicted and the brother seeing him for the final time. I forgot, have people seen Tony since then?


I think the Hechts are also judged a little harshly. I agree with the consensus that the mother did come off as a bit snobby, but she did invite Tony in and genuinely seemed to care about her son's well-being.

I don't even understand the criticism of the sister. She was on camera for five seconds, IIRC, and all she said was that her brother seemed changed. Didn't seem snobby or uncaring to me.

The brother didn't seem bad, either. I do have to admit being amused to his sudden whispering during the segment, but he definitely seemed to care about his brother, too. Some people have judged him for not following Tony on the streets to find his brother. First of all, can Tony be trusted after trying to grope the mother and not letting people into Adam's place? Second, it would be very unsafe for the brother to just "spend time on the streets" with Tony, with no guarantee that Adam would be found. It would have been wonderful if the brother could have gone with an undercover agent posing as a friend and they went searching for clues, but that would have been a hell of a gamble.

Tony should have been more thoroughly investigated, IMHO.

When Tony was "squatting" in Adam's apartment, that was pretty disturbing. I would have hired someone to track Tony or paid someone to befriend him to find out about Adam.
Educated, wealthy, and young....perfect target for many things, but has anyone investigated the possibility of him being in a cult? I lost a friend to a cult that was extremely educated and came from a great home. He won't even talk to his own mother now, and he has given his money to the cult leader and goes by another name.
Also, a Canadian friend just came to the US to retrieve his 2 yr old daughter from his wife that joined a cult and fled several months ago.

... has anyone investigated the possibility of him being in a cult?

Very interesting idea. I've been reading through this thread for a few days and have been trying to think up a scenario where a person would leave behind their car and so much cash.

If Tony, a "homeless" person, or a random nut, killed Adam, they would have at least taken the cash. If Adam decided to become homeless, he would probably take the money to live on or give away to others he met so they could buy food. Not taking the money with him has always been a confusing part of the situation for me. I can understand where someone might leave their car or designer clothes or whatever, but no matter what they're doing in life just about everyone needs money.

But it does make sense that if he decided to join some kind of offbeat religious group, he might have left his worldly possessions behind and started living a totally different lifestyle. In a some kinds of cults, he wouldn't need the money or may have entered the group on even footing with everyone else, bringing nothing with him when he joined.

I'd really like to know if anyone looked into this possible explanation for his disappearance.

Very interesting idea. I've been reading through this thread for a few days and have been trying to think up a scenario where a person would leave behind their car and so much cash.

If Tony, a "homeless" person, or a random nut, killed Adam, they would have at least taken the cash. If Adam decided to become homeless, he would probably take the money to live on or give away to others he met so they could buy food. Not taking the money with him has always been a confusing part of the situation for me. I can understand where someone might leave their car or designer clothes or whatever, but no matter what they're doing in life just about everyone needs money.

But it does make sense that if he decided to join some kind of offbeat religious group, he might have left his worldly possessions behind and started living a totally different lifestyle. In a some kinds of cults, he wouldn't need the money or may have entered the group on even footing with everyone else, bringing nothing with him when he joined.

I'd really like to know if anyone looked into this possible explanation for his disappearance.

Well, my friend (longtime) totally stopped talking to everyone, moved, new phone number, new name, and only goes places with the cult leader. He has to ask permission to do EVERYTHING from the leader. His new name is a biblical one, and if you can believe it, he works in the public schools! He has a new appearance and is not allowed to speak with anyone outside of their church. They go to the kind of church where outsiders are not welcome or embraced, and worship is done while wearing hooded cloaks. He has been gone for 10 years now. I honestly saw something going on with him back then. He stopped coming around, and when he did, his sparkling personality was gone. It was like someone zapped the life out of him. :(

I think DallasTexan meant after Tony was evicted and the brother seeing him for the final time. I forgot, have people seen Tony since then?


I think the Hechts are also judged a little harshly. I agree with the consensus that the mother did come off as a bit snobby, but she did invite Tony in and genuinely seemed to care about her son's well-being.

I don't even understand the criticism of the sister. She was on camera for five seconds, IIRC, and all she said was that her brother seemed changed. Didn't seem snobby or uncaring to me.

The brother didn't seem bad, either. I do have to admit being amused to his sudden whispering during the segment, but he definitely seemed to care about his brother, too. Some people have judged him for not following Tony on the streets to find his brother. First of all, can Tony be trusted after trying to grope the mother and not letting people into Adam's place? Second, it would be very unsafe for the brother to just "spend time on the streets" with Tony, with no guarantee that Adam would be found. It would have been wonderful if the brother could have gone with an undercover agent posing as a friend and they went searching for clues, but that would have been a hell of a gamble.

Tony should have been more thoroughly investigated, IMHO.
Thank you that's all i meant. I'm just giving opinions or thoughts because the case that was given by UM left more questions than answers since Tony was only depicted by the family and never gave his side of the story.

I don't think his family did anything wrong at all. In fact I have little doubt that law enforcement told them to stay off of the streets and they should have. Chances are the brother or mom, sister, whoever, could have been hurt looking for their son by taking to the streets. you see people do this in other segments and it is very dangerous.

No. You see, that's where you're wrong. Adam's family actually tried on several occasions to talk to Tony, but he was evasive and unhelpful.

On one occasion, someone, I think it was Adam's brother, knocked on the door of the apartment looking for Adam. Tony refused to open the door all the way, and only spoke for a brief moment before closing the door. And that was Adam's apartment, which Tony was living in, before being kicked out by the family.

On another occasion, Martine knocked on the door of Adam's apartment, and Tony came out to grope her, forcing Martine to semi-slap him to get him away. Later, she says "I just want to know where my son is. Where my son is, where is he?" At which point, Tony says that "I'm your son." Martine, realizing that Tony is being evasive, leaves.

I just feel that the Hechts are judged too harshly at times. I mean, after all, Martine invited Tony into her home and gave him a meal of cheeseburgers. That's kind and generous, isn't it?
Im just giving my opinion and I am not claiming to be right or wrong. I also said that I was not judging the family and didn't think they did anything wrong. I even went as far to say that I as much as I like to help people I don't know if i would have invited tony into my house if my son brought him over? I'm just choosing to look at it from both perspectives since we never got tony's side of the story that's all.....

The family are the victim here and there is nothing wrong with being who you are whether you are Rich or Homeless. in society people are different. There are different classes of people both socially and economically(and combined). We are all different. Adam appeared to be stepping out of his element to help others and it wound up hurting him. This doesn't always happen and the most common crime of robbery does not appear to be the cause of disappearance. so there is obviously more to the story that we all would like to know. that's all i care about. i'm not here to judge the family, they are the victim. I also believe that tony was not the guilty party, so he too may have been a victim if he lost his friend. based on the small amount of evidence that we have to go by tony and the family did not like each other and there was little to no communication between them as you point out. I guess we may never know. and it could be possible that Tony did something, but I question the fact that Law Enforcement never charged him. Did law enforcement ever make any comments about tony or anyone else being a suspect?

I want to know why there isn't an age progression picture of what he'd look like today. Just about every other missing person from the show has one on the Charley Project website except him.

Very interesting idea. I've been reading through this thread for a few days and have been trying to think up a scenario where a person would leave behind their car and so much cash.

If Tony, a "homeless" person, or a random nut, killed Adam, they would have at least taken the cash. If Adam decided to become homeless, he would probably take the money to live on or give away to others he met so they could buy food. Not taking the money with him has always been a confusing part of the situation for me. I can understand where someone might leave their car or designer clothes or whatever, but no matter what they're doing in life just about everyone needs money.

But it does make sense that if he decided to join some kind of offbeat religious group, he might have left his worldly possessions behind and started living a totally different lifestyle. In a some kinds of cults, he wouldn't need the money or may have entered the group on even footing with everyone else, bringing nothing with him when he joined.

I'd really like to know if anyone looked into this possible explanation for his disappearance.
that is a possible scenario. and yes he may have been instructed to leave his money or something of that nature. But who knows, anything is possible with this case. We just don't know. It doesn't appear that he was harmed or murdered because there is not evidence. I think over the course of time when no one hears from him people assume that he must have died because he never returned. I don't know what to think about this case. It seems like there are far more questions than answers. Has this been profiled by any other media? I'd like to see it if it has.

Well, my friend (longtime) totally stopped talking to everyone, moved, new phone number, new name, and only goes places with the cult leader. He has to ask permission to do EVERYTHING from the leader. His new name is a biblical one, and if you can believe it, he works in the public schools! He has a new appearance and is not allowed to speak with anyone outside of their church. They go to the kind of church where outsiders are not welcome or embraced, and worship is done while wearing hooded cloaks. He has been gone for 10 years now. I honestly saw something going on with him back then. He stopped coming around, and when he did, his sparkling personality was gone. It was like someone zapped the life out of him. :(
I have a family member that is in something like that. We are all christian so we are unsure of what she is doing because we know that she is a genuine person. but she moved away and doesn't talk with anyone at all anymore. Every now and then she will send an email to let us know she is ok and that she is praying for us etc. but we think her and her child are in a cult. The last time I talked to her I begged her to come to a family event and she said she is with her new family that God wants her to be with. It kind of hurt my feelings, but what are you gonna do? I just hope she is not in any danger.

What was the UM segment where the young girl escapes from a cult? I'm not talking about the case where that crazy dude kills his own son. that was sort of like a cult i guess. I'm drawing a blank or I'm confusing this with another show.

What was the UM segment where the young girl escapes from a cult? I'm not talking about the case where that crazy dude kills his own son. that was sort of like a cult i guess. I'm drawing a blank or I'm confusing this with another show.
That would be the Nelson DeCloud Cult with Julie Cooper being the escapee.

Another thing that bothered me about Tony was that he influenced Adam to do that strange ritual that caused Adam's hands to burn. Adam still had the burns when he disappeared.

When Tony was "squatting" in Adam's apartment, that was pretty disturbing. I would have hired someone to track Tony or paid someone to befriend him to find out about Adam.
Educated, wealthy, and young....perfect target for many things, but has anyone investigated the possibility of him being in a cult? I lost a friend to a cult that was extremely educated and came from a great home. He won't even talk to his own mother now, and he has given his money to the cult leader and goes by another name.
Also, a Canadian friend just came to the US to retrieve his 2 yr old daughter from his wife that joined a cult and fled several months ago.

I still can't believe someone would go to such a length. Adam was completely in over his head.

Another thing that bothered me about Tony was that he influenced Adam to do that strange ritual that caused Adam's hands to burn. Adam still had the burns when he disappeared.
was that drug related? do you think adam was taking drugs? I don't recall that being in the segment, but it has been a while since I've watched.

After reading some of the comments, I thought I'd throw my two cents in too. There's an old saying that "loose lips sink ships". I don't believe that Tony did anything to Adam and then again, that is just my belief. I think maybe Tony divulged some information about Adam (i.e. him being rich, him being a friend, etc) to some other homeless individuals and maybe one of them used Tony's association with Adam to possibly set him up. Then again, this is just my theory.


I think this is extremely likely.

As I've mentioned elsewhere when discussing Adam, I worked directly with the homeless for over two years. Many of the homeless are very kind people, but a large amount are also struggling with addiction and/or severe mental health issues. Even if they themselves wouldn't hurt someone, living on the street usually means associating with dangerous people who would.

In other words, you wouldn't want your personal information circulating through that grapevine. I adored many of my clients, but I would never have let one of them know where I lived. It was simply a matter of safety.

Tony might not have intended to hurt Adam, but if he ran his mouth off about where he was staying, you can bet some unsavory ears that were listening would have perked up.

Curiously, there is no age progression photo of Adam, but upon some digging, I did find this aged sketch of what he might look like today:

http://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/32418_515278981823114_73248140_n.jpg

Unfortunately, Adam is in all likelihood, deceased. I don't think it was foul play or anything like that. As the late Robert Stack said in the segment, Adam had become disillusioned over time. I think that he simply went to live among the homeless and developed a drug addiction which killed him. With no identification on him, he was considered just another John Doe.

I still am baffled by his family's lack of interest in the case even years later.

I still am baffled by his family's lack of interest in the case even years later.

Que?

If they weren't interested, why did they go on national television?

why didnt adams brother pursue tony harder after he saw him a year after adams disappearance? I mean if your family member is missing and you see the person who last saw them alive, would you not investigate into it as hard as you can?

Well, Tony was both homeless and had mental issues. You could only get so aggressive with a person like that without appearing like a jerk. Plus, it's really the authorities job to do that and not Adam's brother's.

perhaps they were afraid of tony.we don't really know how aggressive he might have been,just based on the UM portrayal of him.jmo.

Que?

If they weren't interested, why did they go on national television?

I have no doubt they cared very much about Adam but I react to that segment the way many people on here react to the Cynthia Jane Anderson segment especially when it comes to the demeanor of her father.

Anyhow and I may have mentioned this before but my feeling is Adam's family coming from a somewhat insulated environment may have not been as adept as someone else would've been in analyzing the situation at hand. In fact in the interviews with Adam's family, his mother and his sister seem downright confused by the situation which is understandable but almost in a sense that would lead the viewer to believe that at the very least they were somewhat naive as to the ways of the world.

The interviews just border on the bizarre and I have no idea if Adam left his insulated lifestyle in order to broaden his horizons and just ended up getting mixed up with the wrong people or what happened? I just know that the entire segment is just very confusing and I think consequently it's one of those cases that will never be solved. In fact judging from the segment alone is it a fair question to ask how well did Adam's family actually know him?

perhaps they were afraid of tony. we don't really know how aggressive he might have been, just based on the UM portrayal of him.

It is difficult to know how accurate the portrayal of Tony, but if he is anything like that in real life-even by how he looks and his demeanor, he is not someone I would want to get too involved with, he seems like a weirdo.

Regarding Adam Hecht, I found the sister to seem very detached in regards to Adam's disappearance, the brother less so. I never saw the mother as detached, especially when she gets choked up towards the end. Stilll more emotion than Cynthia Anderson's father had.

The Hecht family may not have known Adam as well as they think they did, but I think Adam's disappearance (of 25 years now) goes back to Tony. I say this with all due respect to Adam Hecht, who may be deceased for all we know, but a lot of wealthy young people who have lived insulted lives often want to get involved with those less fortunate or those in other parts of the world. While this is very admirable, it's done with a lack of savvy or street smarts and can lead to being in the wrong place at the wrong time. My youth was somewhat insulated, but if Tony was half as creepy as the actor on UM was, I wouldn't have gotten near him. There are people and places you know well enough to avoid.

Or, alternately, Adam Hecht just got sick of his life (must have been tough with that wealth) and pulled off a disappearance that pales only to Jimmy Hoffa.

A couple of things I need to say.

As someone who has spent time with homeless people in bigger cities such as Sacramento, Nashville, and New Orleans, and who has been homeless myself for various reasons throughout my life (a lot of times by choice), don't think just because someone is homeless that they are stupid or crazy. Yes, there are some dangerous people, but there are dangerous people is every walk of life. The segment that aired about Adam Hecht portrayed Tony as some crazy, disgusting, leech that was taking advantage of Adam, but weather or not that was the actually how things were is another story. The only real accounts of Tony were described by Adam's family, who seemed pretty stuck up and judgmental to begin with, so it's hard to say, and you can't make that call based on the simple fact that he was homeless.

I don't know if I buy Tony having anything to do with Adam's disappearance. It's hard to say one way or another with as little information and details that are given. I do think that the most likely scenario is that Adam met with fowl play somewhere on the streets, but who actually did it I don't know. Beverley Hills can be an extremely dangerous place.

I think the Hechts get an undeserved bad rap on this forum. I don't think any of them said anything that was really out of line. I don't think they had any problem with Adam wanting to help those less fortunate, but being that Tony had caused Adam to get burns on his hands, was evasive when asked where Adam was, wouldn't move out of his apartment and groped Martine in the hallway, I can understand why they wouldn't want to be around them. I can understand that we can feel a certain way after viewing a UM segment, but how many of us would really be comfortable letting some dirty, smelly, disheveled street person who we don't know from Adam (pun not intended) into our house? I know I wouldn't.

That being said, I managed to unearth a nugget of info I don't think has been addressed before. It appears as if Adam liked to do meditating in the mountains. Gotta wonder if he met his end in the mountains somewhere, perhaps exposure to the elements or a bear or something. Certainly adds a new angle to the case.

http://www.beverlyhills.org/citygovernment/departments/policedepartment/crimeinformation/missingpersons/adamarthurhecht/

That being said, I managed to unearth a nugget of info I don't think has been addressed before. It appears as if Adam liked to do meditating in the mountains. Gotta wonder if he met his end in the mountains somewhere, perhaps exposure to the elements or a bear or something. Certainly adds a new angle to the case.

http://www.beverlyhills.org/citygovernment/departments/policedepartment/crimeinformation/missingpersons/adamarthurhecht/

This might explain why he left his cash and keys in the rental car. I could see a situation where he decided to leave material things behind and he did seem to be exploring his spirituality and the deeper side of life.

I was thinking maybe he had left his money in the car to go meditate while not being encumbered with "worldy" things, then planning to go back to his car and go home. BUT, he also left his keys behind (was the car locked or unlocked? I forgot) and that would make me think that he was intentionally abandoning the money, clothes left behind in the vehicle, etc, permanently.

I think it's more likely he met w bad fate,(via someone he was going to meet,or someone he met up w/ on the st) and his money,wallet and keys were planted back in the car once someone killed him. jmo.

I think the Hechts get an undeserved bad rap on this forum. I don't think any of them said anything that was really out of line. I don't think they had any problem with Adam wanting to help those less fortunate, but being that Tony had caused Adam to get burns on his hands, was evasive when asked where Adam was, wouldn't move out of his apartment and groped Martine in the hallway, I can understand why they wouldn't want to be around them. I can understand that we can feel a certain way after viewing a UM segment, but how many of us would really be comfortable letting some dirty, smelly, disheveled street person who we don't know from Adam (pun not intended) into our house? I know I wouldn't.

This, 100%. I had never seen the segment prior to coming to the board some years ago, and all I remembered was a lot of people talking about how obnoxious everyone was, especially Martine's acting (she IS an actress) and "put on" accent (she IS English). After I saw the segment, I wondered what on earth the fuss was all about. I thought Harold was actually one of the more likable interviewees on UM, and I liked Martine as well. Totally normal people with totally normal feelings and reactions.

This has Adam as a young boy, in his missing poster and then in an age progression drawing:

http://www.forensicmag.com/article/forensic-art-age-progression?page=0,2

I think the Hechts get an undeserved bad rap on this forum. I don't think any of them said anything that was really out of line. I don't think they had any problem with Adam wanting to help those less fortunate, but being that Tony had caused Adam to get burns on his hands, was evasive when asked where Adam was, wouldn't move out of his apartment and groped Martine in the hallway, I can understand why they wouldn't want to be around them. I can understand that we can feel a certain way after viewing a UM segment, but how many of us would really be comfortable letting some dirty, smelly, disheveled street person who we don't know from Adam (pun not intended) into our house? I know I wouldn't.

I don't know if I would personally but I had a relative who did just that. He used to take in disadvantaged people he would meet on the streets and attempt to teach them how to read and write and things of that nature.

This might explain why he left his cash and keys in the rental car. I could see a situation where he decided to leave material things behind and he did seem to be exploring his spirituality and the deeper side of life.

I was thinking maybe he had left his money in the car to go meditate while not being encumbered with "worldy" things, then planning to go back to his car and go home. BUT, he also left his keys behind (was the car locked or unlocked? I forgot) and that would make me think that he was intentionally abandoning the money, clothes left behind in the vehicle, etc, permanently.

That would make him just another David Stone, lost in the desert/mountains. Maybe someday his bones will be identified.

Apostapler's comment just reminded me...

A couple days ago, I read about a man's remains being found in his car only 100 feet off the road in Colorado. He'd driven his car off a cliff in an apparent suicide all the way back in 1987.

So there he was, kinda close to the road, in a car, and he wasn't spotted for 26 years. If Adam was in the woods by himself and something caused him to die, it might be years before his remains would be found, if ever.


Mr. Vasey, Colorado:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/13/ronald-vaseys-remains-fou_n_3269295.html

Apostapler's comment just reminded me...

A couple days ago, I read about a man's remains being found in his car only 100 feet off the road in Colorado. He'd driven his car off a cliff in an apparent suicide all the way back in 1987.

So there he was, kinda close to the road, in a car, and he wasn't spotted for 26 years. If Adam was in the woods by himself and something caused him to die, it might be years before his remains would be found, if ever.


Mr. Vasey, Colorado:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/13/ronald-vaseys-remains-fou_n_3269295.html

True that! How long did it take them to find Mike Riemer after he was killed...years and years.

Perhaps not the exact same thing, but I love this story nonetheless. A few day ago, there was a story about a man named Greg Karper, who rounded up a bunch of Abercrombie and Fitch clothing and was passing it out to people on Skid Row, tarnishing the image that the clothes are only worn by beautiful, popular young people as was the goal of A & F CEO Michael Jeffries.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/abercrombie-fitch-fallout-la-man-523418

I gave away most of my A & F clothing to the less fortunate earlier in the year.

The CEO of A & F is the creepiest thing I've ever seen! *Shudders* :eek:

Perhaps not the exact same thing, but I love this story nonetheless. A few day ago, there was a story about a man named Greg Karper, who rounded up a bunch of Abercrombie and Fitch clothing and was passing it out to people on Skid Row, tarnishing the image that the clothes are only worn by beautiful, popular young people as was the goal of A & F CEO Michael Jeffries.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/abercrombie-fitch-fallout-la-man-523418

I gave away most of my A & F clothing to the less fortunate earlier in the year.

That is AWESOME! The CEO of A&F is a complete jackoff.

As for meditation in the mountains ,I highly think Adam would find Beverly Hills remote enough and the kind of mountains he would do his soul searching in. Lets not forget his car was found on a Beverly Hills side street. And the keys were found in the ignition and car unlocked. Who leaves their car that way? The only thing I can see is the person was in a hurry to dump the car and run and didn't think about taking the keys out of the ignition or locking the door. We don't even know if Adam was the one who drove the car there. As for leaving his wallet in a car that is unusual, men usually have their wallets glued to them, to the point were they leave their wallet in their pants pocket over night weather pants are hanging on a bed post or over a chair. But what I find the most unusual is who carries 600 dollars around with them? That's an offal lot of money. The more money a person has the less they carry cash around with them, very little if any. They would rely on credits cards more. All I could think of is someone either paid him back and he never got to the bank or he was on his way to do a transaction and never got there. Still it is possible he joined up with a cult and left all his worldly possessions behind even in that strange way.

if he never met tony he'd still be here now

they just aired this segment again on lifetime so it refreshed my memories. I don't remember the entire original segment regardless I agree if he had never met Tony he would be alive today. That could mean drugs, a cult which is kinda what I believed happened. I have seen this before and have personally gone through this exact same thing with a family member so it seems like the scenario I believe the most. Reading some of the scenarios and the reactions on this forum has forced me to think twice about my initial reaction. In either case I feel for the family and think they are judged a little harshly.

i think him meeting Tony set off some imbalance mentally. that led to him giving everything up, taking to the streets, and ultimately dying in some way shape or form.

As for meditation in the mountains ,I highly think Adam would find Beverly Hills remote enough and the kind of mountains he would do his soul searching in. Lets not forget his car was found on a Beverly Hills side street. And the keys were found in the ignition and car unlocked. Who leaves their car that way? The only thing I can see is the person was in a hurry to dump the car and run and didn't think about taking the keys out of the ignition or locking the door. We don't even know if Adam was the one who drove the car there. As for leaving his wallet in a car that is unusual, men usually have their wallets glued to them, to the point were they leave their wallet in their pants pocket over night weather pants are hanging on a bed post or over a chair. But what I find the most unusual is who carries 600 dollars around with them? That's an offal lot of money. The more money a person has the less they carry cash around with them, very little if any. They would rely on credits cards more. All I could think of is someone either paid him back and he never got to the bank or he was on his way to do a transaction and never got there. Still it is possible he joined up with a cult and left all his worldly possessions behind even in that strange way.
I have to say i agree %100 with you on that. I couldn't tell you how many times I've gotten annoyed and yelled at my husband for leaving his damn wallet in his pants, and just throwing them around. You also make a good point with the cash he was carrying, someone could have prevented him from getting to where he was supposed to be.

Beverly Hills is not remote. However, it's not a far drive to the vast Angeles National Forest, but I suspect his car would have been found closer to there if his goal had been meditation in the mountains.

People tend to over complicate cases like this one. He more than likely didnt leave on a spiritual quest or leave his old life behind, etc. He acted eccentric & felt sorry for the less fortunate like many people pretend to (look up slumming also)so he started bringing them food and hanging out with them & whatnot.

Tony happened to be the one he was apparently close to & also the one UM focused on, but honestly he more than likely went into an ally with food and money for some homless people one night as he usually did & then got killed for them wanting more. His body was then put into a dumpster & was the end of it. Wrong place, wrong time. If some homeless junkie in an ally is looking for their next high & you walk up with a pocket full of money its not gonna end well.

People tend to over complicate cases like this one. He more than likely didnt leave on a spiritual quest or leave his old life behind, etc. He acted eccentric & felt sorry for the less fortunate like many people pretend to (look up slumming also)so he started bringing them food and hanging out with them & whatnot.

Tony happened to be the one he was apparently close to & also the one UM focused on, but honestly he more than likely went into an ally with food and money for some homless people one night as he usually did & then got killed for them wanting more. His body was then put into a dumpster & was the end of it. Wrong place, wrong time. If some homeless junkie in an ally is looking for their next high & you walk up with a pocket full of money its not gonna end well.

I always wondered where the "he helped the homeless" thing came from? Did he tell his parents that?

I always felt like this case was told through his family to make Adam not look bad. Not saying they're wrong for that, but it's obvious Adam was a drug addict.

He more than likely over-dosed, or was killed in a robbery.

they just aired this segment again on lifetime so it refreshed my memories. I don't remember the entire original segment regardless I agree if he had never met Tony he would be alive today. That could mean drugs, a cult which is kinda what I believed happened. I have seen this before and have personally gone through this exact same thing with a family member so it seems like the scenario I believe the most. Reading some of the scenarios and the reactions on this forum has forced me to think twice about my initial reaction. In either case I feel for the family and think they are judged a little harshly.

Ya know, the more I think about this case, the more I wonder if Adam O'd purposely? I don't mean to keep throwing around the suicide motive, but this case is odd....

A rich young man who one day flipped a 180. I also wonder if maybe he was undiagnosed with a mental illness that would make him do what he did? It's bizarre to one day start doing hard drugs, and hanging with a homeless man and letting him live in your house and bringing him around your family.

I wonder if he was depressed/suicidal, or if he had an untreated mental illness?

I always wondered where the "he helped the homeless" thing came from? Did he tell his parents that?

I always felt like this case was told through his family to make Adam not look bad. Not saying they're wrong for that, but it's obvious Adam was a drug addict.

He more than likely over-dosed, or was killed in a robbery.

Yeah apparently...I just rewatched the segment and his family says he started going into the homeless areas (allys / skidrow) etc and helping the homeless - bringing them food or a little money, clothing...whatever they needed from the sound of it.

Imo it kind of came off a bit like he was acting like he was some kind of messiah or something to them. The man that brings them what they need & heals them. I know a lot of young liberals that act that way.

Once you keep coming around with snacks and get known as the guy with money in his pocket you most likely look like a dinner plate to the fiends & crazies. Not gonna end well. They live right next to dumpsters and nobody probably goes back there except the trash man. Would be easy for a corpse to wind up in the pile of garbage, never to be seen again.

Yeah apparently...I just rewatched the segment and his family says he started going into the homeless areas (allys / skidrow) etc and helping the homeless - bringing them food or a little money, clothing...whatever they needed from the sound of it.

Imo it kind of came off a bit like he was acting like he was some kind of messiah or something to them. The man that brings them what they need & heals them. I know a lot of young liberals that act that way.

Once you keep coming around with snacks and get known as the guy with money in his pocket you most likely look like a dinner plate to the fiends & crazies. Not gonna end well. They live right next to dumpsters and nobody probably goes back there except the trash man. Would be easy for a corpse to wind up in the pile of garbage, never to be seen again.

He probably wasn't helping them. He probably told his family that as an excuse to have Tony (his drug connection) around.

I mean what other excuse could you use for hanging around a homeless man and bringing him to your parents house?

Also, Tony lived with Adam. If his mother paid his rent then it's possible he lied about being meals on wheels to keep her happy so she would keep paying his rent.

Also, Tony lived with Adam. If his mother paid his rent then it's possible he lied about being meals on wheels to keep her happy so she would keep paying his rent.

Pretty solid theory actually.

He probably wasn't helping them. He probably told his family that as an excuse to have Tony (his drug connection) around.

I mean what other excuse could you use for hanging around a homeless man and bringing him to your parents house?

Also, Tony lived with Adam. If his mother paid his rent then it's possible he lied about being meals on wheels to keep her happy so she would keep paying his rent.

Youd be surprised how weird certain young people in areas like that can get. That’s definitely a very plausible theory though...it would be my second guess tbh. However according to the case, Tony still walked around in a homeless mindset, stinking like a piece of **** and unbathed, etc. I cant see Adam not making him wash if they were getting it on like that :rotflmao:

Youd be surprised how weird certain young people in areas like that can get. That’s definitely a very plausible theory though...it would be my second guess tbh. However according to the case, Tony still walked around in a homeless mindset, stinking like a piece of **** and unbathed, etc. I cant see Adam not making him wash if they were getting it on like that :rotflmao:

Adam's family said that he had burn marks and would disappear for days at a time, those are signs of a drug addict, much different than your young liberal trying to take pictures for instagram to show off. Tony was more than likely a tour guide to where he could score dope. Tony was also mentally ill and also a drug user, who still hung on the streets so I'm not sure of the love angle.

Adam had the money, and Tony knew where to score. I think that's all there was here.

Adam's family said that he had burn marks and would disappear for days at a time, those are signs of a drug addict, much different than your young liberal trying to take pictures for instagram to show off. Tony was more than likely a tour guide to where he could score dope. Tony was also mentally ill and also a drug user, who still hung on the streets so I'm not sure of the love angle.

Adam had the money, and Tony knew where to score. I think that's all there was here.

It was said tony was a weird guy...could barely speak english and did strange things...I’m not saying it wasnt drugs but the only thing steering me away from that is even IF tony was his pipeline into drugs, he would introduce adam to his connect and maybe get a finders fee or something ...you get introduced to the dopeman and you then call HIM for drugs.

You dont have an entourage of homeless people in your life or one stinky, disgusting dude follow you around and also MOVE IN with you and become your day to day shadow.

Adam had his own place and his own money, it would be pointless to bring a filthy vagrant around his family or put on some weird charade for his loved ones. Drug dealers typically aren’t homeless, if adam wanted drugs he would simply return to said drug dealers house and score...not turn his life upside down imo.

It was said tony was a weird guy...could barely speak english and did strange things...I’m not saying it wasnt drugs but the only thing steering me away from that is even IF tony was his pipeline into drugs, he would introduce adam to his connect and maybe get a finders fee or something ...you get introduced to the dopeman and you then call HIM for drugs.

You dont have an entourage of homeless people in your life or one stinky, disgusting dude follow you around and also MOVE IN with you and become your day to day shadow.

Adam had his own place and his own money, it would be pointless to bring a filthy vagrant around his family or put on some weird charade for his loved ones. Drug dealers typically aren’t homeless, if adam wanted drugs he would simply return to said drug dealers house and score...not turn his life upside down imo.

Yeah, you bring up a valid point. That's why in an above post I wondered if Adam was depressed/suicidal, or had an undiagnosed mental illness, because that is bizarre.

However, it's possible that he did drugs with Tony and realized that Tony had more "insight" or was more "real" than the people in his life. Maybe he was tired of being around superficial people and found Tony to be more "down to earth" so to speak.

His father also passed away and I wondered if that was the catalyst for all of this. Maybe Tony was filling in that "father" position Adam was missing. But it's possible that Tony was more than a drug plug, and was more of a guide to another world in general. Showing Adam the flipside to what he was used to knowing.

I know alot of people go for the sex angle with this one, but I don't think so. I think Adam initially wanted Tony for a drug plug, and Tony became something akin to a mentor. Showing Adam different stuff, and with his father deceased, it's possible that he just clung onto Tony as a father figure so to speak.

It's crazy, but if someone is depressed or mentally ill you never know what's going through their head.

I read some pretty strange comments on the unsolved mysteries website. At least 2 people said Tony himself disappeared in 1996 and that Adam is dead.

I read some pretty strange comments on the unsolved mysteries website. At least 2 people said Tony himself disappeared in 1996 and that Adam is dead.

They also said Tony was a gay prostitute. I'd take all of that with a grain of salt.

They also said Tony was a gay prostitute. I'd take all of that with a grain of salt.

This ^.

That website has a shitload of trolling in the comments lol

man wish they got an interview with tony. I wanted to see what he was really like, remember we are mostly relying on adams families description of him and its mostly negative. Heck even the police questioned him and let him off.

I read some pretty strange comments on the unsolved mysteries website. At least 2 people said Tony himself disappeared in 1996 and that Adam is dead.

This is funny... Tony was a homeless guy in greater Los Angeles. How hard it would it be for him to "disappear" in plain sight? I can't imagine anyone kept really close tabs on him, even with this case still open.

I think Adam was privileged and at some point felt really guilty about it. He probably though he was being noble by living with the homeless, but some of them probably resented him for it. Imagine a rich guy, who could be living in BH but choosing to live on the streets. I'm sure some of the homeless didn't take kindly to that since Adam didn't need to live on the streets. I'm sure they hated him for being rich but hated him more for trying to live like them.

I think Adam eventually got beat up and killed on the streets and they just never found his body.

Ya know, the more I think about this case, the more I wonder if Adam O'd purposely? I don't mean to keep throwing around the suicide motive, but this case is odd....

A rich young man who one day flipped a 180. I also wonder if maybe he was undiagnosed with a mental illness that would make him do what he did? It's bizarre to one day start doing hard drugs, and hanging with a homeless man and letting him live in your house and bringing him around your family.

I wonder if he was depressed/suicidal, or if he had an untreated mental illness?

..........and again, with another case, a lightbulb went on for me.

Never heard of the drug angle before, but it makes infinitely more sense than the "white knight" angle I originally bought into. It also explains why his family would take pains to try and paint him as one - they didn't want his 'problem' to become public knowledge and make them/the family look bad.

The mental illness bit sounds plausible too. It's possible his drug use brought it to the surface and exacerbated it to the point where he either OD'd or was suicidal and chose to OD intentionally.

..........and again, with another case, a lightbulb went on for me.

Never heard of the drug angle before, but it makes infinitely more sense than the "white knight" angle I originally bought into. It also explains why his family would take pains to try and paint him as one - they didn't want his 'problem' to become public knowledge and make them/the family look bad.

The mental illness bit sounds plausible too. It's possible his drug use brought it to the surface and exacerbated it to the point where he either OD'd or was suicidal and chose to OD intentionally.

Unfortunately I grew up in that environment, and I can tell you the characteristics of a drug addict:

1.) His family said that he had burn marks that came from a "ritual" - more than likely burned himself doing drugs
2.) They reported that he would go missing for days at a time and resurface - drug addicts do this when they go on binges
These are some signs of a drug addict/crackhead

Adam was presumably loaded, and crack is cheap, so I wonder if he went overboard and overdosed? Makes me wonder if he was in the apartment dead/or high when his brother came by.

It also explains why his family would take pains to try and paint him as one - they didn't want his 'problem' to become public knowledge and make them/the family look bad.

Correct. They were doing damage control. A well-to-do family like that can't have the knowledge that one of their own is a drug addict running around skid row.

I think the OD angle is most plausible - Occam's Razor there

I think the OD angle is most plausible - Occam's Razor there

I agree.

I agree.

to throw the hiccup in the theory, which I am with you on, except for this part..

Where's the body? An OD.. Big deal. He ODs and a day or a week or a month later, someone stumbles through the alley and notices him stinking the place up with decomp.

People don't generally disappear from ODs.

The theory that makes the most sense to me, which still has holes and isn't all that good, is that maybe he was mentally ill, joined the homeless to live with them.. "Simpler Life" and all that.. left the LA area and passed away as a vagrant somewhere else. They didn't enter his DNA info into CODIS and he's an unclaimed body in some paupers grave in Wichita, KS or similar.

And we're assuming that his family submitted DNA to be tested... According to the Doe Network, it is available. But, again, the case I was involved with a few months back.. The family had submitted DNA, but the missing person who died in 1994 never apparently had DNA samples submitted post-mortem.

to throw the hiccup in the theory, which I am with you on, except for this part..

Where's the body? An OD.. Big deal. He ODs and a day or a week or a month later, someone stumbles through the alley and notices him stinking the place up with decomp.

People don't generally disappear from ODs.

The theory that makes the most sense to me, which still has holes and isn't all that good, is that maybe he was mentally ill, joined the homeless to live with them.. "Simpler Life" and all that.. left the LA area and passed away as a vagrant somewhere else. They didn't enter his DNA info into CODIS and he's an unclaimed body in some paupers grave in Wichita, KS or similar.

And we're assuming that his family submitted DNA to be tested... According to the Doe Network, it is available. But, again, the case I was involved with a few months back.. The family had submitted DNA, but the missing person who died in 1994 never apparently had DNA samples submitted post-mortem.

Was just gonna post this. If he ODed, nobody would go through the touble of disposing the corpse imo. I mean, these people live in allys and get high, they have no address or anything, why would they care if someone ODed? They would probably just move an ally over.

Even more so, why is Adam getting high in nasty allys when he has the comfort of his home.

Guess thats the trouble of this whole thing - no theory makes complete sense lol...I do agree that whatever happened his family wasnt giving the whole story.

to throw the hiccup in the theory, which I am with you on, except for this part..

Where's the body? An OD.. Big deal. He ODs and a day or a week or a month later, someone stumbles through the alley and notices him stinking the place up with decomp.

People don't generally disappear from ODs.

The theory that makes the most sense to me, which still has holes and isn't all that good, is that maybe he was mentally ill, joined the homeless to live with them.. "Simpler Life" and all that.. left the LA area and passed away as a vagrant somewhere else. They didn't enter his DNA info into CODIS and he's an unclaimed body in some paupers grave in Wichita, KS or similar.

And we're assuming that his family submitted DNA to be tested... According to the Doe Network, it is available. But, again, the case I was involved with a few months back.. The family had submitted DNA, but the missing person who died in 1994 never apparently had DNA samples submitted post-mortem.
Was just gonna post this. If he ODed, nobody would go through the touble of disposing the corpse imo. I mean, these people live in allys and get high, they have no address or anything, why would they care if someone ODed? They would probably just move an ally over.

Even more so, why is Adam getting high in nasty allys when he has the comfort of his home.

Guess thats the trouble of this whole thing - no theory makes complete sense lol...I do agree that whatever happened his family wasnt giving the whole story.

You're both forgetting one very important aspect to this case.....TONY.

Let's think about it. When Adam's mother came over she said Adam wasn't there but Tony was. From that we can conclude that Tony hid his body. He was still in his apartment after all.

It's possible that Adam OD'ed in his apartment and Tony hid his body somewhere and continued living there.

I agree he was on drugs, but his cause of death was probably a robbery/murder. It must have become common knowledge very quickly that a rich guy from BH was hanging out on the streets, buying drugs or whatever he was doing. He was an easy target and he could easily have been dumped somewhere outside of BH.

Tony was probably completely oblivious or indifferent to Adam's disappearance. Even if Adam was gone longer than usual I don't think Tony had the mental faculties to raise the alarm about the situation, he probably did not even notice.

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I agree he was on drugs, but his cause of death was probably a robbery/murder. It must have become common knowledge very quickly that a rich guy from BH was hanging out on the streets, buying drugs or whatever he was doing. He was an easy target and he could easily have been dumped somewhere outside of BH.

Tony was probably completely oblivious or indifferent to Adam's disappearance. Even if Adam was gone longer than usual I don't think Tony had the mental faculties to raise the alarm about the situation, he probably did not even notice.

Disagree, we never met or heard from the real Tony so we do not know what he's really like. You claim he doesn't have the mental faculties yet he was a homeless man who got to move into an apartment of a dude in beverly hills, he's got social skills and probably a great salesman. Why would he want his cash cow out of his life and dead?

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Disagree, we never met or heard from the real Tony so we do not know what he's really like. You claim he doesn't have the mental faculties yet he was a homeless man who got to move into an apartment of a dude in beverly hills, he's got social skills and probably a great salesman. Why would he want his cash cow out of his life and dead?

In my post, I did not say he wanted Adam dead. What I said was he was either oblivious or indifferent to his disappearance.

Like everyone else I am basing my theory off of what was portrayed in the segment. Based on Mrs. Hecht's depiction of Tony's reaction to Adam's disappearance I get the impression that Tony did not comprehend fully what was going on. Mrs. Hecht could have been lying about the whole "give me a kiss" interaction but I see no reason why she would.

I think Adam probably did have compassion which is why he shared the apartment with Tony. But it is very likely that both of them were habitual drug users and developed a co-dependent relationship based on that. I think that when Adam disappeared, Tony just became lost once again, just as he probably was before and after he met Adam.

Here’s something that could explain how Adam could be missed in plain site if he OD’d... This article (http://articles.latimes.com/1990-12-27/local/me-10055_1_department-s-volunteer-program) from 1990 (the year after Adam disappeared) talks about how chronically backed up the LA County coronor was (and still is). That office is horribly busy and chronically understaffed. This should sound familiar from the Crystal Spencer case.

Now picture a “homeless” man is found, who looks like hell and died of an overdose, in a crappy part of the city with no ID. How much attention is he going to get from a busy and overworked coroner’s office? This was before DNA was big. Now I would wonder if they kept DNA for testing later, but it is possible he could have been lost in the shuffle. I would expect that Adam’s family was investigating John Doe bodies but then again maybe not. They seemed like an odd bunch, and they couldn’t fathom his street life.

I still don’t think this is what happened but it would explain a few things.

You're both forgetting one very important aspect to this case.....TONY.

Let's think about it. When Adam's mother came over she said Adam wasn't there but Tony was. From that we can conclude that Tony hid his body. He was still in his apartment after all.

It's possible that Adam OD'ed in his apartment and Tony hid his body somewhere and continued living there.

I disagree. Not saying you're wrong, it's fully possible, but to me, that's a big leap to your conclusion. Apparently Adam gave him a key to his apartment, so, it's fully plausible that something happened to Adam and Tony knew nothing about it. Adam goes out on the street without Tony and gets bopped on the head or something and he's an unclaimed body.

I can come up with a few things to poke holes in that.. While it's certainly plausible that Tony hid the body.. If Adam died in the apartment from an OD.. how would Tony remove the body and hide it so well that it's never found? If Tony killed him in the apartment and then hid the body, we've got the above problem and in addition, while we don't have anything in writing that the police luminoled the apartment, you pretty much have to believe that they did.. It would have been the first thought to come to my mind. If Tony killed him in the apartment, you'd probably find blood. No indication of that.

To believe Tony was involved... Moreso than just being present when he died on the street somewhere.. We have to believe that Tony had the smarts, means and wherewithal to dispose of the body where it couldn't be found for 30 years.

The one piece, and all the theories are fine, but it all has to come back to this in my mind. The body has been found, but has been either misidentified or unidentified. My belief, Adam isn't 'missing', it's just not realized that he's been found yet.

I disagree. Not saying you're wrong, it's fully possible, but to me, that's a big leap to your conclusion. Apparently Adam gave him a key to his apartment, so, it's fully plausible that something happened to Adam and Tony knew nothing about it. Adam goes out on the street without Tony and gets bopped on the head or something and he's an unclaimed body.

I can come up with a few things to poke holes in that.. While it's certainly plausible that Tony hid the body.. If Adam died in the apartment from an OD.. how would Tony remove the body and hide it so well that it's never found? If Tony killed him in the apartment and then hid the body, we've got the above problem and in addition, while we don't have anything in writing that the police luminoled the apartment, you pretty much have to believe that they did.. It would have been the first thought to come to my mind. If Tony killed him in the apartment, you'd probably find blood. No indication of that.

To believe Tony was involved... Moreso than just being present when he died on the street somewhere.. We have to believe that Tony had the smarts, means and wherewithal to dispose of the body where it couldn't be found for 30 years.

The one piece, and all the theories are fine, but it all has to come back to this in my mind. The body has been found, but has been either misidentified or unidentified. My belief, Adam isn't 'missing', it's just not realized that he's been found yet.
The police wouldn’t have even needed to spray luminol. I’m sure Tony wasn’t the most meticulous guy in LA county. If Adam was killed and/or hidden in the apartment, blood would have been more than obvious. My 2 cents anyway.

I disagree. Not saying you're wrong, it's fully possible, but to me, that's a big leap to your conclusion. Apparently Adam gave him a key to his apartment, so, it's fully plausible that something happened to Adam and Tony knew nothing about it. Adam goes out on the street without Tony and gets bopped on the head or something and he's an unclaimed body.

I can come up with a few things to poke holes in that.. While it's certainly plausible that Tony hid the body.. If Adam died in the apartment from an OD.. how would Tony remove the body and hide it so well that it's never found? If Tony killed him in the apartment and then hid the body, we've got the above problem and in addition, while we don't have anything in writing that the police luminoled the apartment, you pretty much have to believe that they did.. It would have been the first thought to come to my mind. If Tony killed him in the apartment, you'd pro
bably find blood. No indication of that.

To believe Tony was involved... Moreso than just being present when he died on the street somewhere.. We have to believe that Tony had the smarts, means and wherewithal to dispose of the body where it couldn't be found for 30 years.

The one piece, and all the theories are fine, but it all has to come back to this in my mind. The body has been found, but has been either misidentified or unidentified. My belief, Adam isn't 'missing', it's just not realized that he's been found yet.

Tony hiding the body is a big leap to my conclusion, but saying that Adam isn't missing isn't? Okay.

First, I never said Tony killed Adam in the apartment, just present at the time of his overdose, so you wouldn't need a luminol testing for that.

Secondly, Tony was homeless, and hung out on the street so it's more than plausible he knew where to hide a body. He could've easily hid Adam in an alleyway or trashcan.

Sure, Adam being attacked on the street by an unknown assailant is more than plausible but that comes back to WHERE IS THE BODY?

And we don't even know how crazy Tony actually is. All we got is a flimsy story that could be fake from Adam's mother, and the police released him. He could be a clever dude for all we know. I'm not saying he killed Adam, because I don't think he would kill his bread and butter, but he did/does hang in the streets. It's not unreasonable to think he knows of a hiding place.

Regardless pf the details surrounding Adam and Tony, I will always go back to thinking he was killed due to coming around the homeless scene be it for drugs or to help them, whichever.

He became known as the naive, street-stupid guy who always had lots of cash on him, and he was ultimately killed by a fiend or crazy for that money. His body was simply dumped in the trash and never seen again.

The police wouldn’t have even needed to spray luminol. I’m sure Tony wasn’t the most meticulous guy in LA county. If Adam was killed and/or hidden in the apartment, blood would have been more than obvious. My 2 cents anyway.

Probably true. But.. If we're theorizing that Tony could have disposed of the body never to be found.. Safe to assume he was killed in the house.

I don't know, maybe someone will suspect he chopped him up and sent him down the garbage disposal. Lack of any blood evidence not totally, but pretty much would eliminate that he was killed at the apartment.

Tony hiding the body is a big leap to my conclusion, but saying that Adam isn't missing isn't? Okay.


You're giving Tony far more credit than he likely deserves. YOU hide a body and get away with it. It isn't easy.

and, I was involved in a very similar case. Woman had been missing since 1994. She wasn't missing. She was right where the coroner left her. Why couldn't they link up that this body was this person? Because the body had the name spelled Reeves. The person who was being looked for, the name was Reaves. THAT kept someone 'missing' for 24 years.

My opinion is that your theory is relying on Tony to either be an evil genius or the luckiest SOB on the face of the Earth.

My theory relies on the government to **** things up.

Which one is the more likely theory?


First, I never said Tony killed Adam in the apartment, just present at the time of his overdose, so you wouldn't need a luminol testing for that.

Secondly, Tony was homeless, and hung out on the street so it's more than plausible he knew where to hide a body. He could've easily hid Adam in an alleyway or trashcan.

Sure, Adam being attacked on the street by an unknown assailant is more than plausible but that comes back to WHERE IS THE BODY?

And we don't even know how crazy Tony actually is. All we got is a flimsy story that could be fake from Adam's mother, and the police released him. He could be a clever dude for all we know. I'm not saying he killed Adam, because I don't think he would kill his bread and butter, but he did/does hang in the streets. It's not unreasonable to think he knows of a hiding place.

Yes.. Where is the body? My theory that the body has been found and misidentified. to me, that's a whole lot better theory than Tony turning into some kind of MacGyver to dispose of a body.

My first look.. LA Coroners office. I'd be pouring over the files from 3 to 6 months after the last known sighting of Andy looking for a match based on physical attributes.

I won't weigh in on whether Tony was involved in his death. I don't think there's evidence to go either way. Maybe he did, maybe he didn't.. You locate the body, you answer that. My opinion is that the body has likely been found, but noone realizes it. And that I doubt he was killed in his apartment. Simply because I don't think Tony would have the smarts to kill him there, or remove the body if he just died of an OD or something. Nor do I think Tony would have the smarts to drive Andy's car to where it was found and stage that scene.

Probably true. But.. If we're theorizing that Tony could have disposed of the body never to be found.. Safe to assume he was killed in the house.

I don't know, maybe someone will suspect he chopped him up and sent him down the garbage disposal. Lack of any blood evidence not totally, but pretty much would eliminate that he was killed at the apartment.



You're giving Tony far more credit than he likely deserves. YOU hide a body and get away with it. It isn't easy.

and, I was involved in a very similar case. Woman had been missing since 1994. She wasn't missing. She was right where the coroner left her. Why couldn't they link up that this body was this person? Because the body had the name spelled Reeves. The person who was being looked for, the name was Reaves. THAT kept someone 'missing' for 24 years.

My opinion is that your theory is relying on Tony to either be an evil genius or the luckiest SOB on the face of the Earth.

My theory relies on the government to **** things up.

Which one is the more likely theory?



Yes.. Where is the body? My theory that the body has been found and misidentified. to me, that's a whole lot better theory than Tony turning into some kind of MacGyver to dispose of a body.

My first look.. LA Coroners office. I'd be pouring over the files from 3 to 6 months after the last known sighting of Andy looking for a match based on physical attributes.

I won't weigh in on whether Tony was involved in his death. I don't think there's evidence to go either way. Maybe he did, maybe he didn't.. You locate the body, you answer that. My opinion is that the body has likely been found, but noone realizes it. And that I doubt he was killed in his apartment. Simply because I don't think Tony would have the smarts to kill him there, or remove the body if he just died of an OD or something. Nor do I think Tony would have the smarts to drive Andy's car to where it was found and stage that scene.

First you're on apples and oranges. The government "messing things up" has nothing to do with Tony removing his body from the apartment. He could've placed his body in a not so hidden area and it could've been picked up as a John Doe.

As I said previously, it's hard to say what Tony would or wouldn't do as we never see or hear from him. In your mind Tony may be incapable, but in reality he could be capable of hiding Adam's body

Tony doesn't have to be an evil genius to hide a body of someone who OD'd on drugs. For all we know he could've placed his body in a trash bag and put him in a trash can.

I get that you think that his body was found but wasn't identified, but has nothing to do with where he was found.

if adams body has been recovered but not identified wouldn't there be dental records to identify him? I am sure the his family or the cops must have tried to identify his body among john doe's in their initial search via dental or medical records.

another angle not too many people discuss here, how bout good ol plain suicide? He left his car keys and money in the car because he didn't need them for his last actions. He could have drowned himself or off's himself in a very remote location.

My theory on the body is simple and goes back to the family and the way he was portrayed in UM.

Assuming Adam was into drugs, then it stands to reason that they would take great pains to portray him in such a way so as to avoid drawing attention to his issues/problems (which would cause a family like his great embarrassment).

I figure that they found the body, but because his family wanted to keep a lid on *everything*, they exerted pressure/influence where necessary in order to keep the news from leaking out.

(It would be easier for them to sweep it under the rug and let it be forgotten than it would to admit someone from their sphere of society had such a problem and fell victim to it)

if adams body has been recovered but not identified wouldn't there be dental records to identify him? I am sure the his family or the cops must have tried to identify his body among john doe's in their initial search via dental or medical records.

another angle not too many people discuss here, how bout good ol plain suicide? He left his car keys and money in the car because he didn't need them for his last actions. He could have drowned himself or off's himself in a very remote location.

I have no problem with a suicide theory. Works better in some ways.. He hitches or walks out into the boonies and offs himself.. There aren't many in the LA area, but.. Possible. (There aren't many 'boonies' in the LA area is what I meant)

The car certainly has to be looked at as a big factor. Either the car was staged, or he left the car and never came back to it. With no indication of others prints in the car or anything like that.. I lean away from it being staged.

The weirdest part of this is why was no body ever found? His car was in the shop and his rental car was found with his wallet and money. So that means he likely didn't drive himself away. Did he walk, get a ride, use public transportation?

I've always wondered what kind of network there is for missing Joe Does and how hard his family looked. For example, if he wandered north to Santa Barbara, Monterrey, San Francisco, etc. and died there, would the body ever have been linked to Adam?

The fact that his body wasn't found is odd. If Tony or some other street person killed Adam, it really isn't that easy to get rid of a body. They wouldn't have had the means to cut him up, so the only possibility I can see is that they put him in a dumpster and his body was never seen. Suicide is a distinct possibility, but again, how could he commit suicide near BH/LA and not be found? Unless, again, he wandered north and killed himself somewhere else. He could have easier jumped from the Golden Gate Bridge and never been found.

If it was mental illness, I suppose he could have just lived as a street person in greater LA and just never been noticed. He was young enough that he could still be living on the street today.

Here's my latest article about Adam Hecht with interviews with his family as well as some other information not listed in the UM segment.

https://lostnfoundblogs.com/f/adam-hecht-searching-for-answers

Here's my latest article about Adam Hecht with interviews with his family as well as some other information not listed in the UM segment.

https://lostnfoundblogs.com/f/adam-hecht-searching-for-answersAnother story well done Crystal Dawn.

This is the first time I’ve heard about Adam’s dealings with Mr. Combiner who turned out to be a scam artist. Perhaps the whole sour deal with Adam’s mother losing $100,000 was the turning point for Adam.

Another story well done Crystal Dawn.

This is the first time I’ve heard about Adam’s dealings with Mr. Combiner who turned out to be a scam artist. Perhaps the whole sour deal with Adam’s mother losing $100,000 was the turning point for Adam.

Although I don’t put much stock in it, you have to wonder if Gombiner murdered Adam. Maybe Adam confronted him about the scams and he was dealt with permanently. Adam sounds like the kind of guy who would be really upset if someone was taking advantage of other people, especially his mom.

Although I don’t put much stock in it, you have to wonder if Gombiner murdered Adam. Maybe Adam confronted him about the scams and he was dealt with permanently. Adam sounds like the kind of guy who would be really upset if someone was taking advantage of other people, especially his mom.

Yes I don't think the family thinks Gombiner did anything to physically harm Adam. It was just another example perhaps of why Adam was disillusioned with everything. They weren't positive if his mother losing all her money happened until right after he went missing, but they seem to think Adam was starting to realize what a shady person Gombiner was.

Great article Crystaldawn. I really don't understand what happened to him, but I lean towards he left on his own. If someone had done something to him, especially someone who was from the homeless community he was involved with, I don't know why they wouldn't have taken his money from him. I could really only see robbery as a motive for one of them to do something to him, so it makes little sense.

Yes I don't think the family thinks Gombiner did anything to physically harm Adam. It was just another example perhaps of why Adam was disillusioned with everything. They weren't positive if his mother losing all her money happened until right after he went missing, but they seem to think Adam was starting to realize what a shady person Gombiner was.

To me, the fact you mentioned that the family continued to see Tony up until a few years ago, and the police know that he's still in the area and still alive.. That's another nail in the coffin to the idea he was involved.

Now, this certainly isn't a hard and fast rule.. but it's one that I go back to on many cases where there's a suspect after 20 years or so.. If someone has it in them to murder someone.. What are the odds that they will live a clean, crime free life afterwards?

I'm sure it happens. Heat of the moment crimes and the like. But.. Take the West Memphis Three. If they had it in them to do what they were accused of (and that Miskelley kinda-sorta-maybe confessed to).. Do you believe that they would have lived the past 8 years outside of prison with no criminal activity or would have made it through the 18 years in prison with basically no infractions?

Look at the two kids who killed Jamie Bulger in the UK. I believe both of them have been rearrested.. one of them for more serious crimes than the other.

So.. That's another reason that I don't think Tony had anything to do with it.

I was shocked when I read that Tony is still alive and was seen as recently as 4 years ago. And the police know where he is.

I was shocked when I read that Tony is still alive and was seen as recently as 4 years ago. And the police know where he is.

I would assume that it's a far easier lifestyle to be homeless in Beverly Hills vs some place like New York City.

Great article CD!

Thanks so much atomicfizz and sdb4884!! :wave:

My feeling is that Adam is dead, unfortunately. I just can’t see how he could be alive and not one single time after all these years, made any contact whatsoever with any family or friends. I especially feel this way given the fact that his Father passed away not long after his disappearance. He had strong family ties and seemed like an all-around good guy and it would have been completely out of character to walk away from his life, even if he did feel like he was privileged and didn’t deserve what he had.

Oh and also, great job CD!

My feeling is that Adam is dead, unfortunately. I just can’t see how he could be alive and not one single time after all these years, made any contact whatsoever with any family or friends. I especially feel this way given the fact that his Father passed away not long after his disappearance. He had strong family ties and seemed like an all-around good guy and it would have been completely out of character to walk away from his life, even if he did feel like he was privileged and didn’t deserve what he had.

Oh and also, great job CD!Adam's father Harold Hecht had died four years previously by the time Adam disappeared.

Adam's father Harold Hecht had died four years previously by the time Adam disappeared.

Ah, that’s right. I got thrown off by Harold/Harold Jr.

One thing that bugs me about how his car was found was the large amount of cash that was left behind. Adam seemed tired of his privileged life, but he also seemed to like to help those less fortunate. He may have chosen to disappear and live among the homeless, but why leave the money behind? Even if he wasn't going to use it himself, why not give it away to others or buy food/supplies for others?

He may not have been in a good state of mind then, however I don't know why he would just leave the money behind if it could have done some good.

I think Tony is the biggest red herring in this whole case. I can see why the police paid so much attention to him, but I really don't think he had an active role in what happened to Adam. He may have a better idea of where he went but I don't think he is responsible for what happened in any way.

Thank you Fletch!! :)

I do think its probable that Adam is now dead. When I found out that Tony was still alive with his rough lifestyle, it gave me more hope, but its more likely than not Adam wouldn't have survived this long. UM did mentioned Adam liked to meditate in the mountains so I can't help but wonder if his remains could be up there and have been up there all along. LE did tell me there really weren't that many sightings of Adam after he went missing so if that's the case, it would make sense. His case does kind of remind me of the David Stone case in some ways.

UM did mentioned Adam liked to meditate in the mountains so I can't help but wonder if his remains could be up there and have been up there all along. LE did tell me there really weren't that many sightings of Adam after he went missing so if that's the case, it would make sense. His case does kind of remind me of the David Stone case in some ways.

You know, I never really thought of that but it would make lots of sense. There are plenty of remote and mountainous areas around greater LA (like the Angeles National Forrest). Adam could have went on a spiritual walk to contemplate his life (a la David Stone, like you said) and could have met his fate there. He could have had an accident, succumbed to the elements, or committed suicide. Depending on what he had with him and what his intentions were, it could have been any of those.

That would explain why he left without his ID, money, etc. because he didn't need it where he was going and either intended to get it later or knew he was never coming back. The whole "look on the streets" quote from Tony could just be him guessing as well.

Thank you Fletch!! :)

I do think its probable that Adam is now dead. When I found out that Tony was still alive with his rough lifestyle, it gave me more hope, but its more likely than not Adam wouldn't have survived this long. UM did mentioned Adam liked to meditate in the mountains so I can't help but wonder if his remains could be up there and have been up there all along. LE did tell me there really weren't that many sightings of Adam after he went missing so if that's the case, it would make sense. His case does kind of remind me of the David Stone case in some ways.

Loved this one! There was a new information that actually made me change my mind. I used to be convinced Tony killed him. But now given the police and family don't think he is involved I do not think he was involved. He also doesn't seem to have the resources or ability to have hidden Adam so completely he nor his remains have ever been found.
I still believe he is no longer with us unfortunately. There have been no sightings and he has not contacted any friend or family. So if he is still alive he has either changed his appearance drastically or he left the area all together.
I do wonder is he is a John Doe somewhere......

This was a case where I never developed any interest in it being solved. I don't know exactly what it is but I'm still incapable of caring about this guy who was a very privileged young man who decided all on his own to give up the life of luxury without bothering to tell his family goodbye. I'm sure part of it is I don't think for a second his disappearance at first was due to foul play, but rather to escape his shallow life he got lost in the homeless crowd of California and possibly even ended up in Mexico. I think he became so self-righteous of his own perceived newfound "greatness" due to his work with the homeless that he developed the complex that affects cult leaders. He may have ran across the wrong homeless person and tried to push himself and his ideas on them with grave results. I think foul play is what he ended up with ultimately but his disappearance was voluntary.

This was a case where I never developed any interest in it being solved. I don't know exactly what it is but I'm still incapable of caring about this guy who was a very privileged young man who decided all on his own to give up the life of luxury without bothering to tell his family goodbye. I'm sure part of it is I don't think for a second his disappearance at first was due to foul play, but rather to escape his shallow life he got lost in the homeless crowd of California and possibly even ended up in Mexico. I think he became so self-righteous of his own perceived newfound "greatness" due to his work with the homeless that he developed the complex that affects cult leaders. He may have ran across the wrong homeless person and tried to push himself and his ideas on them with grave results. I think foul play is what he ended up with ultimately but his disappearance was voluntary.

Sympathy for him is irrelevant to me. Sympathy for his family is what I have. Yeah, assuming he disappeared voluntarily and then met with foul play or just passed away.. Ok.. He did what he wanted.

But leaving his family knowing nothing.. Whether because he screwed them over or just circumstance.. They didn't do anything wrong and don't deserve the wondering and lack of knowledge about what happened to him.

I can understand being mad at him or whatever there.. But you have to feel for his parents and siblings having been left with this hole (even if he created it intentionally) for so many years.

Thank you Fletch!! :)

I do think its probable that Adam is now dead. When I found out that Tony was still alive with his rough lifestyle, it gave me more hope, but its more likely than not Adam wouldn't have survived this long. UM did mentioned Adam liked to meditate in the mountains so I can't help but wonder if his remains could be up there and have been up there all along. LE did tell me there really weren't that many sightings of Adam after he went missing so if that's the case, it would make sense. His case does kind of remind me of the David Stone case in some ways.

Reading your blog about this case, basically the cops know of the current whereabouts of Tony. Do they suspect he had something to do with the disappearance but there's no evidence to prove it? Or do they think he had nothing to do with it? You mentioned that the family believed he had nothing to do with it, but what about the police?

Reading your blog about this case, basically the cops know of the current whereabouts of Tony. Do they suspect he had something to do with the disappearance but there's no evidence to prove it? Or do they think he had nothing to do with it? You mentioned that the family believed he had nothing to do with it, but what about the police?

I found it strange how Tony is so easily ruled out just due to his mental health and personality type. He struck me as unhinged and truth be told: anyone who can survive living as a homeless surrounded by drug addiction, crime, deprivation, and the like (especially with a disadvantage of supposed mental illness to hinder such a hard life...) for 30+ years... COME ON. He`s street smarter and more cognitively aware than UM and Adam`s family are giving him credit for. I could be wrong but I get the feeling Tony isn`t as harmless and just `out there` as he leads people to believe.

Saw the AH segment. Bizarre. Strange that this rich, wealthy kid would befriend a strange homeless guy to begin with. But, his subsequent disappearance is even stranger.

I honestly have no strong opinion either way on whether or not AH met with foul play, or just decided to "throw it all away" and leave his life of wealth & privilege behind.

I also don't have a strong opinion as to whether the homeless guy "Tony" (if that was his real name) had any connection to AH's disappearance. Maybe, but not necessarily.

I think Tony is the biggest red herring in this whole case. I can see why the police paid so much attention to him, but I really don't think he had an active role in what happened to Adam. He may have a better idea of where he went but I don't think he is responsible for what happened in any way.

Agreed. It makes perfect sense that Tony would stay in the apartment after Adam disappeared, since it was free room and board. But, that doesn't necessarily mean he had anything to do with Adam's going missing.

I doubt we will ever find out what happened in this case.

I found it strange how Tony is so easily ruled out just due to his mental health and personality type. He struck me as unhinged and truth be told: anyone who can survive living as a homeless surrounded by drug addiction, crime, deprivation, and the like (especially with a disadvantage of supposed mental illness to hinder such a hard life...) for 30+ years... COME ON. He`s street smarter and more cognitively aware than UM and Adam`s family are giving him credit for. I could be wrong but I get the feeling Tony isn`t as harmless and just `out there` as he leads people to believe.

I agree it's strange that Tony has been able to survive on the street this long. But, in and of itself - I don't see that this necessarily means that much to this case.

Really sounds like a case of somebody consumed by drug addiction.

Here is a writeup I did on Adam's case.

www.facebook.com/groups/631752367223887/permalink/1397651353967314/