Lucas said, “Candace Swain had everything going for her. Education, a commitment to public service, family, friends. She was on the verge of graduation when she disappeared shortly after midnight as the Sigma Rho Spring Fling was winding down.
“No one realized Candace was missing, until her roommate, Annie, called campus police late Monday afternoon.”
Regan half expected audio of Annie at that point, but instead, Lucas continued.
“According to the police report, the last person who spoke to Candace was her fellow sorority sister Taylor James. Several people reported that Candace and Taylor had been arguing, but according to Taylor, they were having ‘a stupid disagreement’ and it wasn’t an ‘actual argument.’ She said to police, and I quote, ‘Candace got angry and stormed off. She did that sometimes when she was losing an argument, but she never held grudges. Neither do I. I expected to see her later.’
“Taylor and a small group of people she was with were the last to see Candace alive as the Spring Fling was breaking up. Just over a week later, on the morning of Sunday, April 19, Candace’s body was found in Hope Springs Lake, a man-made lake in the middle of Hope Centennial Golf Course.”
John said, “Over a week? That’s a long time.”
Regan concurred. “It’s the primary reason I agreed to listen to the podcast and consider going on his program. According to Lucas, she was dead less than twenty-four hours. That should be easy information to verify.”
“Hmm.”
Her dad was thinking. He was one of the smartest cops she knew.
Chrissy’s voice came back. “My mom called me Tuesday. She said not to worry, it was likely a misunderstanding, but Candace left campus Friday night and hadn’t returned. She asked if Candy had called me. She hadn’t.”
Lucas said, “When Annie returned to campus late Sunday night, she didn’t think twice about Candace not being in the room because she often stayed out late or over with a boyfriend. It wasn’t until Monday afternoon when Annie came back from class and tried to call her roommate that she found her phone in their dorm room, on the charger, with dozens of missed calls. That is when she called NAUPD, the campus police.”
Regan thought that Lucas did a decent job recounting the initial missing-person investigation, from Annie’s growing concern to contacting campus police to the delayed call to Flagstaff PD when campus police determined she hadn’t returned home—something that often happened in the college experience.
“According to campus records, Candace’s student card key—the card that is used to enter the dorms or use the meal plan—was used to enter the Mountain View dorm at 12:20 a.m. Saturday morning, consistent with witness statements that Candace left the party after midnight. Her card key was used once more—Sunday night at 11:10 p.m. According to the police, no one saw her enter the building or leave after. A thorough search of the building yielded no additional information or signs of foul play. There are no security cameras inside dorms or on the side entrance where she entered—the entrance closest to the parking garage. The police have never suggested why she might have returned or when she left again. Her card key has never been found.
“Once Flagstaff PD were notified on Wednesday morning,” Lucas continued, “they focused their investigation on friends, family, and boyfriends of Candace Swain. Witnesses indicated that Candace had been seeing two different men, one a student and one who worked downtown as a bartender. Both were publicly cleared by the police in her disappearance.”
Good to know, Regan thought, but she would want to read the reports.
You haven’t even decided whether to get involved.
Except maybe she always knew she would.
Lucas explored every public theory of Candace’s disappearance, from being overwhelmed with her finals to a possible accident to foul play.
Chrissy said, “Candy would never, never, never disappear. Not without telling someone. Not without telling me. We were close. We talked every week. I…I blame myself. I should have known something was wrong when she didn’t call me on Sunday. I had a meet and didn’t get back to my dorm until late and just didn’t think about it… I keep thinking if I reached out, if I had talked to her, this wouldn’t have happened.”
Lucas said, “No one has come forward stating that they saw Candace after the Spring Fling party. Her car was found in the Mountain View parking garage, dedicated parking for the sororities, on Tuesday morning—but no one could verify how long it had been there. She didn’t go to any classes, she didn’t volunteer at Sunrise Center, and she didn’t contact anyone—at least, no one has come forward. The missing-person investigation became a homicide investigation on Sunday, April 19, when Candace’s body was found in Hope Springs Lake.”