The views and opinions expressed in Cold and Missing are exclusively those of the hosts. All parties mentioned are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Cold and Missing also contains adult themes and languages. Listener discretion is advised. I'm your host, Ali McLaughlin -Sulkowski. And I'm your co -host, Eli Sulkowski. And this is Cold and Missing, where we cover cold cases and missing person cases. Hello, everyone, and welcome back to Cold and Missing. I'm your
host, Ali. And I'm your co -host, Eli. Welcome back, everyone. So sorry about last week. We lost internet here at our apartment, and our landlord is completely in control of it. So we were at the mercy of our landlord for several days. So if you're a renter, you probably know what I'm talking about. Yes, but the problem is fixed. Everyone in the apartment building actually has Wi -Fi now, so we are back at it this week, and we are on episode 143. And this
is a missing person case this week. All right, let's get into it. Let's do it. Today, we are talking about the missing person case of Francis Martin Cantea, and this takes place in July of 1975 in Bremerton, Washington. But first, a little bit about Francis. Francis, or better known to family and friends as Frank, was 19 years old in July of 1975, but he was just a few weeks away from his 20th birthday. He lived in a rented apartment on his own in Bremerton, Washington.
He had grown up nearby and his parents were still in his hometown. Frank was at the very start of adulthood. He had a bright future ahead of him. He had just begun an apprenticeship at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, where he was training as a pipe fitter. His mom, Anna, remembered how excited he was to get his life started. At this time in 1975, Frank was overweight, and according to his mother, he had been crash dieting, which
can be a dangerous way to lose weight. He was doing this in the months leading up to his disappearance. Though through this process, he had lost 60 pounds prior to disappearing. Frank had been buying new clothes to fit his new size. When he disappeared, he stood about 5 '9 and was around 200 pounds, with curly blonde hair and brown eyes. His friends and family say that he smiled easily. He wasn't dating anyone at this time, but he had a small group of friends that he enjoyed hanging out
with. He also enjoyed writing. He had even enrolled in a creative writing class at Olympic College. Frank had never been in trouble with the law, and no one knew of anyone who might have any reason to be upset with him. His family said that he had no enemies. And now, a timeline of events. Sunday, June 22, 1975. This is the last time that Anna sees her son. Frank went with his family for a day trip to Seattle, Washington. Anna later recalled that nothing seemed unusual
about Frank or his behavior that day. He was acting normal, everyone remembered. He was easygoing and happy during the outing. His mother said, quote, he didn't seem troubled at all or upset in any way. Of course, you never know what's going on between a person's ears. On Monday, June 30, 1975, Frank skips work at the naval shipyard. Normally, he was dependable, so this
was out of character. According to coworkers, he was unhappy with the classroom work of the apprenticeship, but otherwise he had liked working there. Thursday, July 3rd, 1975. This is the last time that Frank is seen alive. I do not have any details about what he was doing during the day. But what we do know is that during the evening, he stopped by his friend Dan DiRocco's
house to return a record he had borrowed. Dan asked Frank if he wanted to stay for a minute and chat, but Frank said he couldn't stay, couldn't even sit down for a couple of minutes. Dan noticed Frank seemed nervous. Frank left quickly after dropping off the record, and by all accounts, this was the last confirmed sighting of him. Three days later, on Sunday, July 6th, 1975, another friend, Toby Daniels, calls Frank's mom,
Anna. Toby asked if she knew where Frank was because their group of friends hadn't been able to reach him. His friends had assumed that he went to visit his parents. Anna informed them that Frank was not with her, but that she would head to his apartment to check on him. When Anna first arrived at the apartment, she was able to locate Frank's 1965 Mustang. It was parked outside of the apartment and it was locked. She heads to Frank's apartment and is able to get
inside. It's unclear if the door was unlocked or if being his mother, she had a spare key. But either way, Anna gets inside. At first glance around Frank's apartment, nothing is really out of order. When she got to his bedroom, She quickly noticed several personal items were strewn across the top of his dresser, however. His wallet, his car keys, his house keys, work ID, comb, and money all were on the dresser. Inside his wallet were his IDs, credit cards, and about
$32 in cash. Everything suggested Frank had only stepped out for a minute and fully intended to come back. Nothing was missing, nothing of note, nothing that you would take on an overnight trip was gone. Tuesday, July 8th, 1975. It's been five days since Frank was last seen. Anna and her husband, who also went by Frank, waited to hear from their son. Finally, after five days of not hearing from him or being able to get in touch with him, they called the police to
report him missing and make a report. Police start to work on Frank's case slowly. The police department at this time had a belief that missing person cases resolve themselves for the most part. The people come back, they just went off the grid for a few days and didn't tell anyone. We do know that in those early days, police spoke with Frank's landlady, who said she hadn't heard any unusual noises coming from his apartment in the days leading up to his disappearance.
He also had paid his rent for the month of July. However, the days start to trickle into weeks. The next update comes on Saturday, August 9th, 1975, so it's been over a month since Frank went missing. With no leads to go off of, police ask the public for help. Police say they have interviewed family, friends, and coworkers, but no one could
provide any answers as to where Frank went. Investigators ruled out financial trouble and noted Frank wasn't the type to hitchhike, go camping, or just wander off. He had never done it before in his 19, almost 20 years. They did learn that he had been unhappy with the schooling portion of his apprenticeship and had recently stopped going to work. His last paycheck was still waiting for him at the shipyard. But other than this, they had no reason to think
why Frank would disappear. His family reached out to relatives in California to ask them if any of them had heard from Frank. They hadn't. They asked the California family to reach out to friends Frank had in California, and none of them had heard from him either. Weeks turn into months. The next update is in January of 1976, so Frank has been missing for six months at this point. There's been no sign of him. Police admit that there have been no real developments
in Frank's case. They said that they have no reason to suspect an abduction. There were no signs of struggle at the apartment and nothing was missing, so they don't think this was a robbery gone wrong or anything like that. If Frank left on his own accord, he left with only the clothes on his back, it appears. Nothing else was missing, not his toothbrush, his wallet, his IDs, all of that was all left. While suicide was considered,
his family strongly doubted it. They felt his body would have been found by now if that were the case. Months turn into years. The next update comes in June of 1977, so two years have passed since Frank was last seen. Frank's family have continued to search for answers. but she couldn't see anything about Frank's case. Rumors swirled around Frank's disappearance. Some said it was aliens. Others speculated he had joined a religious
cult. The alien theory came from a piece that Frank had written in his creative writing class. Some even wondered if he had been recruited by the Navy for a classified assignment. Anna told reporters in 1977, People say it could be something from outer space, amnesia, or a religious cult. But why did he leave his wallet? Every time you put it all together, it just doesn't add up.
We're at a head halt. That's what it is. The family did consider hiring a private investigator, but didn't know what new information they could provide the investigator. Every lead they'd had, they had turned over to police. and the family assumed that police had ran the lead down and there was nothing to develop from it. They didn't think the private investigator could add anything
to the investigation. In February of 1980, so nearly five years after Frank's disappearance, and there are still no answers, police say that they have got very little leads over the years in Frank's case. There's been no activity on Frank's social security number at all. Police say, quite frankly, that they are at the same point today that they were five years ago, the day he vanished. One detective admitted that missing person cases just weren't a priority
for the department. Quote, these should probably be updated more often, Detective Mace says. But we have to prioritize our own activities here and this just doesn't have a high priority. End quote. In February of 2005, Frank's family is issued a presumptive death certificate. The next update really is in 2008, so at that point it's been 33 years since Frank vanished. Anna is still looking for her son in 2008. She says, quote, She admitted that she's about 90 % certain. that
he's no longer alive. However, that 10 % keeps her wondering. At this point, Anna has given police a sample of her own DNA. In case remains are found and Anna has already passed, they'll still be able to compare it, so that way hopefully there are answers in Frank's case. However, this is truly all we know about the disappearance of Frank Cantea. So if you know anything about the disappearance of Francis Frank Cantea or his whereabouts today, please call the Bremerton
Police Department at 360 -473 -5220. So that is the missing person case of Frank Cantea. As always, I really enjoy hearing about the personalities of the... within the cases that you cover and investigate. And Francis, also known as Frank, sounded like a lovely guy at the beginning of his adulthood. I think it speaks volumes about his character that as he was exploring the beginnings of adulthood, he was taking a creative writing
class. To me, that says, Someone is interested in their life and the surroundings of their life, and they're looking to express themselves creatively. I'm just so sad that we don't know what happened to him. I love learning about him, but these cases, especially the ones that come from the 70s, I just hold a special place in my heart for because I know as time ticks by, the less and less likely it is that we will find answers. Yeah, Frank's case is one of those frustratingly
thin cases. There wasn't a lot of information to go through, sift through, coming off of the Burger Chef murders that we had to break into two parts just because there were so many details known about it. And then moving to this case that there's very little known about it. You know, there's no real discussions happening about it, no real energy behind the case, no updates. His mother, Anna, has worked so hard over the
years to keep it in the media. But, you know, we just don't know that much about what happened to Frank or the circumstances around it. Something that you brought up about him is that he was on quite possibly a health journey. I know you did mention crash dieting. So I, you know, obviously we can't speak on what his experience was. It seemed like there was some shifting and major
changes happening in his life. And I do think that even though they are maybe just to like the regular world, like normal shifts in the timeline of a person's life, I think they're worth paying attention to because they could be pivotal moments in his timeline. Yeah, I definitely think. You know, that it's something to note, especially in the months leading up. It was something different going on in his life. And, you know, it's something that maybe was affecting him.
We don't really know, of course, but crash dieting can be really dangerous for some individuals. So we don't know exactly what his experience was. But by all accounts, his family says that, you know, he was doing good. They saw him in the weeks leading up to his disappearance. One friend that was the last person to see him does say that he looked nervous. That's about the only real clue we get to Frank's mind during
this time. To continue on just more about Frank, I just wanted a refresher on what his actual job was at the shipyard. I think I missed that part. So he was doing an apprenticeship as a pipe fitter at the shipyard. Okay, so this new... job slash apprenticeship that he's doing, again, I think it's worth taking note of that he disliked the coursework and that he stopped going and didn't share that with the people in his life or what seemed to be he didn't share with the
people in his life. And I wanted to know if you felt the same, that it was maybe worth taking note of in what little we have of his timeline. Oh, for sure. Yeah. He didn't seem to like the coursework that is uncovered during the investigation. And one thing I am curious about, and it's a question I would have is how many days of work did he miss exactly? We know for sure one date,
a couple of days before he's last seen. But whenever this is talked about, like in the paper at the time, it kind of sounds like maybe there were multiple days that were missed. But July or June 30th is the only firm date that. I could find where he does officially miss work, kind of unprompted, doesn't call, no reason. But there could be more days. So I think that's definitely something to note. Like, why was he missing work that he
seemed to otherwise enjoy? From listening to you and the way that you told the timeline, that was the sense that I got, that it was at least more than one day that there was a little bit of a pattern formed there. And I think that's why I took note of it. But continuing more into the timeline after his disappearance, I wanted to ask a question about the point when his mother makes her way into his apartment. I'm curious to know what you thought about the items strewn
about the dresser. The description to me seemed almost posed, I guess. And I wanted to know what you thought about that. I don't know. You know, on the one hand, to me, it kind of sounds like you come home and, you know, you're emptying your pockets. Your wallet comes out, your keys, you know, your money, your change, a comb that you were carrying. You know, you just take everything out of your pockets and put them on the dresser. So there's like that one aspect where I'm like,
that seems normal. But then what happened to him then? Beyond that, I have no idea. Yeah, something about the language that was always used of it being strewn across the dresser I think is really interesting because that is one detail that emerges again and again. Like his mom describes it that way, the police describe it that way. So that does seem to be something of note. It's just how the items were found.
But it is curious that it is all the things, even the small things like your pocket change, you know, your cash is all left. You know, if you were leaving on your own free will, you'd think you'd take at least some of that with you, but that doesn't seem to be the case here. For me, and the way I broke it down, the way it looked in my head was similar to, you know, what our
dresser looks like. Usually when I get home, I empty my pockets, and it contains my cell phone, my wallet, usually some change keys, almost exactly what he had. even down to the comb. And that's kind of how it read to me is that maybe he just took them out and was possibly changing. But again, because there is limited information here, it leaves lots of room for speculation, which is what my brain is trying to do. But again, so little details. I'm trying to make sense of
what we know. Definitely. There's so little details in this. I think for me, One big question that I would have is just when was he first noticed missing? You know, he goes missing July 3rd. Was he expected somewhere July 4th? Was there a party that he missed? It seemed like by the time that his other friend calls his mom, like he is being missed by several folks at this point. So, you know, how many appointments were missed? You know, when were people expecting to see him?
He didn't show up. I would just kind of be curious to know when exactly Frank was known to be missing. Since Frank was an adult, be it a young adult, it does not shock me that alarm bells weren't rung for his disappearance. I know that the work was being done, but given the time period as well, and honestly, the fact that he was a man.
an adult man the general sense at the time was people are allowed to disappear especially if they're adults yeah you can just tell that the investigation was very slow and kind of by the time they realized there was a problem it was already too late like they had already lost all that time pivoting to speculation on just what the family spoke about and law enforcement kind of as they were grasping at straws to solve this case and move it forward you highlighted a bit
about uh aliens and for me and knowing true crime and just um what my special interests are this time period was rife with conspiracy theories. The 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, it was the birth of cryptic culture. You know, the first speculative sighting of Bigfoot like had just happened not that long ago in relation to this time period. And stuff was coming out about confirmed UFO sightings, lots of misinformation. I don't know. I think it's a particular time for someone to
go missing. Yeah, it really seemed that that just seemed to stem from something he had written in his creative writing class was related to aliens. That's really all I know. I don't know beyond that. the content of the paper was. But yeah, it really seems like for that time period, you know, the religious cults, alien abduction, it's like, yes, you know, the 70s was when a lot of that was kind of thriving. So yeah, all
very time period. But I think when there's just that absence of information or just like firm facts to bring you to reality, it just leaves all this space for, well, anything is possible because like, He just vanished. You know, it really seems that everything was left in his apartment. Nothing was missing. So, you know, that's something I would love to confirm with investigators. But it's like truly nothing was missing from his apartment. No clothes, no bags,
no nothing. Because if so, then it's, you know, he disappeared with the clothes he was wearing. Do we even know what clothes those were? Like, lots of questions. But again, it seems like they wouldn't have known. any of that because they weren't taking it seriously in those first few days first few weeks even just for the future of this case i do hope that we are able to get answers for what happened to frank because It just never sits well with me when somebody just
goes missing. I like to have answers, and I think we should have answers for missing people. So, you know, if he did go off to start a new life, I hope he had a very happy life, but I hope he's able just to let somebody know that that's what happened. And if that's not the case, then I think we should have those answers too, and if somebody's responsible, they should have to answer
for it. But again, if you know anything about the disappearance of Frank Cantea, in July of 1975 or his whereabouts today, please call the Bremerton Police Department at 360 -473 -5220. I was able to find a photo of Frank, so we will have that up. Eli will make the graphics on our Instagram page at coldandmissing. If you're not following us, please do follow us there. So if we do have to take a week off the podcast because something pops up, we will always update you
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which is a lot of the cases we do hear. And if you want to learn more about those cases or maybe find some other cases you haven't heard about before, you should head over to our website, www .coldandmissing .com. We also have transcripts there, official transcripts, so all the spelling is correct. I go through and make sure everything is correct in the transcripts. So if you want the official ones, you can find them there, www .coldandmissing .com. That is all I have for
you this week, though. Thank you so much for listening to Cold and Missing. I'm your host, Ali. And I'm your co -host, Eli. Have a good week and stay safe, y 'all. Stay safe, y 'all.