Where is Danny Ray Michael?

Danny Ray Michael was born November 25th, 1950.

He was reported missing - by a family member - from Laytonville, California to the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office on April 22nd, 1995 (also listed as April 20). He has never been seen or heard from again. His case number is listed as #95-1595.

At the time of his disappearance, he was listed as: 44 years old, white, with sandy brown hair, blue eyes, and a dark mustache. He weighed approximately 140-150 pounds, and his height has been listed as 5'6" and 5'8", and 5'9".

He would now be 73.

There seems to be no other information listed anywhere regarding his appearance: no descriptions of clothing, distinguishing marks, or tattoos that I can find. However, in an article published by the Ukiah Daily Journal (Ukiah, California) shortly after he went missing, family was noted as having said he was "probably wearing black Levis, hiking boots, and a flannel shirt." They also said he was a "happy-go-lucky guy", and that his disappearance seemed weird.

One of his relatives seems to have had the last contact with Danny, in person, on April 3, two and a half weeks before he was reported missing. They had been together in the 46000 block of Fisherman Drive, in Laytonville. Danny told them that he was planning to drive to Garberville, California, in his Ford pickup truck.

According to Google Maps, this would have been 43 miles away and approximately a 50 minute drive north, on US-101, depending where in Garberville he was planning on going. This also seems to be the exact day he went missing according to what happened next, although one of his family members had also stated that he was last seen on April 8th in Laytonville.

According to the MSCO, on April 21, 1995, a family member was contacted by the person who seems to have found Danny's truck. It had been vandalized, and sitting on Sherwood Road, approximately 12 miles from Willits, California, in an area known as "Third Gate". This resident, also of Sherwood Road, had the truck towed to his house on the 20th, where he was able to find some paperwork in the truck, indicating who it belonged to. He then contacted Danny's family, and stated that it had been there since April 3, when he first noticed it. Family has also stated that his truck was found with the keys still in the ignition and he had just installed a new stereo in it, so it would have been strange for him to just abandon it.

After he was reported missing, police towed and stored the truck, and had plans for the Department of Justice to process it. They also conducted a search and rescue operation on April 26, in the area around where his truck had been found. They reportedly followed up on some other leads as well, but there has been no further information.

One strange thing to note - that I am sure was taken into account by all at the time of his disappearance - Garberville, where he said he was heading, is 50 minutes north, while Willits, near where his truck was found, is approximately 15 minutes south of where he left from. This is definitely a peculiar link in the chain. Where was he heading, or rather, how did his truck get there?

I felt drawn to post about Danny as he just so happened to be the first missing person I clicked on when investigating for my first Missing Person's post. I thought his case was definitely strange, but the weird thing about it is that he has only had a NamUs case number (#MP111805) for a few weeks now, and when researching, another site had actually just updated his page that day. It felt like a sign, and as I'm sure you can tell, with all of the other strangeness I'm drawn to, I fully believe in signs.

Danny has been missing for going on 19 years, with The Doe Network labeling him as "endangered missing" (Case number: 1934DMCA. They also list his NCIC case number as #M826224969). It is sad to say that these are likely no longer the words that would be used to describe him. He deserves to be found. His friends and family deserve closure, no matter the circumstances of his disappearance, or the conclusion of his story.

If you know what happened to Danny, or have any information at all, the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office ask that you call their tip line at (707) 234-2100.