A 13-year-old boy playing with a GoPro camera at a lake in British Columbia helped solve a 27-year-old cold case by discovering a car deep under the water’s surface. Even if you think this story is sheer coincidence, you have to admit it’s an amazing tale of how one person’s seemingly mundane actions led to final closure for a woman’s grieving family.
A stolen military Humvee was finally recovered.
It was 1992 when 69-year-old Janet Farris disappeared while driving from her home on Vancouver Island to visit relatives in Alberta. Her family worried about what might have become of her, whether she was alive and okay or dead somewhere, and if they’d ever learn the truth.
That’s where Max Werenka came in 27 years later. He was playing around with his GoPro camera at Griffin Lake, located northeast of Vancouver, when he spotted in the murky, frigid waters the outline of what appeared to be an old car.
Excited about his discovery, the boy told his mom who right away realized she needed to call police. That led to a dive team being sent to the small lake and immediately they were able to read the plate on the car, realizing it was Janet Farris’ 1980s Honda she was last seen driving.
They also found Farris in the driver’s seat, a revelation which shocked Max’s mom. After all, how many parents can say their kid helped with the discovery of a dead body?
With the advent of new or improved technologies, more and more cars are being discovered in bodies of water where they sat completely hidden for years, sometimes even decades. In this case a family now can rest easy knowing their loved one likely died quickly and is now in her proper final resting place.
