Rambo 8:12

Him giving away his possessions is a MASSIVE red flag.

Holy crap, can we give props to this selfless mechanic, Christian, who really went out of his way for a complete stranger. You’re a good man.

The beginning of this story, and how he was giving his stuff to his friends/breaking up with his girlfriend are all massive signs of suicide. My heart goes out to him.

The Mechanic deserves an Award for being such an empathic, caring, upstanding citizen. He didn't know Bryce or his family & he went above & beyond to help the family

PSA to parents: if your kids friends call and say they're concerned about them absolutely DO NOT brush it off because it takes a lot for someone's buddies to do that.

I’m just astonished that their kid was only three hours away and they didn’t just go pick him up. If they’re told that he’s just been sitting there, it’s obvious that he is not doing well (as his friends said). It’s frustrating to hear that he sat there for a whole day and they didn’t just go to him.

As a mother of two young men, I can say without a doubt that once I got the call from the girlfriend, I would’ve hopped in my car & taken off & not mentioned it. There were so many red flags. They had so many opportunities to change their minds & just get in their car. How tragic. Not saying this is the parent’s fault. Just saying I think they made some bad choices when they must’ve realized something was really wrong.

As soon as I heard about him giving away valuables, my heart sank. A lot of people do that before attempting. Some write wills, some blow their money and others gift their most valuable items to friends and family. It's a sign that should not be ignored. Especially if the person doesn't seem their usual self

when he gave his earrings and xbox to his friend, him being suicidal was the first thing I thought. If someone starts giving you their precious things out of nowhere, pay attention to them. Usually this behavior is an apology, a parting gift.

Christian is a really wonderful person. I hope he doesn’t blame himself for not following him all the way home. He did so much to make sure he was safe

Excitement and momentary happiness is NOT the same thing as not being suicidal...

I can't believe the INSANE levels denial by his parents! This was SOOO preventable. I mean, just how many one-in-a-million chances did they get to intervene?! It's like the UNIVERSE was trying to prevent this, and they just shrugged and rationalized every time!

The third time he's lied to them about coming home, you'd think they'd go and fetch him, no?

That Christian guy is a living legend. Truly a genuine guy that went out of his way to help a complete stranger.

It drives me nuts knowing that Bryce's parents didn't jump in their car right away to go to him. They knew where he was. Even after all the forewarning from his girlfriend and room mate. As a parent I would be on my way as soon as they knew he was fine the first time from Christian's report... and they still didn't do anything when they knew he was only a few hours away from reports from the police. His parents really dropped the ball on this one.

The conversation with a friend's parent about something serious is never a good time. Good on Shawn for taking that initiative

His parents should have gone and picked him up. When somebody is acting strangely, you shouldn't trust them to drive themselves anywhere. Especially not on a 3-hour trip.

NO ill intent toward the parents, but after several hours of trying to coax my kid to come home from a strange town with no success, I would have just driven up to find him myself.

The mechanic though oh my GOD, the effort he put in to helping this family, whAt a kind hearted soul!!!!! Bless him!!!!

I would drive 3 hours for an acquaintance I was worried about. Can’t believe the parents couldn’t do it for their son

Christian displaying amazing empathy as a human being for others.

Hats of to Christian. He sounds like such a caring individual that I be he'll carry a burden of guilt with him, probably for the rest of his life.

I lost my son to drug addiction 2 yrs ago 😢, but at least I knew what happened. I cannot imagine losing a child this way, with no closure. I hope his parents have found some kind of peace thru this 🙏🙏

I always thought it a bad thing that my mother was so pushy, but feel it's a godsend after hearing this. If she told me she's flying out, and I told her not to, she'd say, "I don't care if you want me there or not. Something isn't right. You stay right there until I get there." Don't be upset with your overly pushy parents. It could potentially save you someday.

Him breaking up with his girlfriend, giving away his things, substance abuse, and very erratic behavior are HUGE red flags for suicide

I'd like to thank Christian for being such a wonderful human. He went above and beyond to look out for Bryce. We need more people like that.

the story started with him giving away his stuff and my heart just absolutely sank.

That mechanic is a real good dude.. wish he was my neighbor

So strange. That guy Christian is a gem, the world could do with more like him.

As soon as Bryce started giving his prized possessions away to his friend and severed ties with his girlfriend it was obvious this dude was planning on offing himself

What a nice guy the mechanic is and the police officer 2 decent people ❤

A mechanic was more invested than his own parents. Poor guy

Why his parents just didn’t drive to get him in all that time is beyond me, he was there for hours and hours and they had enough time.

As soon as my child starts giving away his loved possessions, I'm on my way.

I feel bad for families who find it so difficult to accept the reality of a child’s death or disappearance that they believe it must have been foul play. Foul play is such a worse scenario but yet that is still easier to believe than that their child was depressed/suicidal.

Major love for the stranger who show more love to him than his own parents ❤️

Christian needs a “life raise”, good human right there

When people start giving away important, valuable things; it is a red flag for suicide. Breaking up for no reason is another one. This broke my heart as a mother.

His parents never did see this coming. So sad. I applaud the mechanic Christian for being such a good guy in Bryce's time of need. No one does that these days. I hope he's found one day. 😢🙏

Thank you Mr ballen for sitting on the side of the highway to tell this story! ❤️

Christian is an exemplary person for going above an beyond to help a stranger.

For him to give belongings away and the other actions, it does sound like he was suicidal.

A stranger tries to accompany him home while his own parents stay at home and avoid facing him with his as-yet-unspoken-about issue. This suggests to me that his parents knew what he wanted to talk about and were terrified of speaking about it. Otherwise they would have gone straight out and got him. They are hiding something.

I am beginning to wonder if I just watch you not so much because of the stories but because of your talent to tell a story in all its details and keep your audience captivated.

I am 31 and I didn't answer my phone for a couple days at one point and my dad showed up at my house 3 hours away. These parents REALLY didn't want to get out huh?

"He's not like that, he's not suicidal"....that's how suicide succeeds

It's crazy to me that his parents didn't go get him. I once missed my flight home from Vegas; I was safe and would have to stay another week with my boyfriend before I could fly back, but my mom still asked both myself and my boyfriend separately if she needed to drive the 8 hours in one direction to come get me. I was calm, just a little upset. If I had been acting like this there would be nothing I could say to prevent her from getting to me

Not my words, but I saw this on an unresolved mysteries subreddit: "Something of an insider here... I can say with certainty that there were issues between Bryce and his family. While Bryce's mother, Karen, is an unrepentant psycho, I am told that Bryce had a tight, borderline codependent relationship with her in the years leading up to his disappearance, but not much is known about their relationship in the final year or so. His relationship with his father, Mike, was at times very tumultuous as Mike would lose his temper, yell, and scream at Bryce over things as trivial as not understanding how to complete his math homework. I don't know if the relationship was ever physically violent, but there was most definitely a lot of verbal/emotional abuse going on in that household, and not just with Bryce. The latter part of Bryce's teen years were marred by a few incidents, such as getting busted with MDMA, as well as a lot of underage drinking issues that have gone largely unreported, all of which served to soil his familial ties. As I understand, Bryce was well on his way to becoming a teen-aged alcoholic. He was apparently known for taking booze to high school and spending some school days maintaining a desired level of intoxication. It's very safe to assume that this behavior continued to spiral out (evidenced by his taste for Adderall and other scripts), and he suffered a psychotic break from it (evidenced by his friends calling his mother with their concerns). It must have been some pretty disturbing behavior in order for kids, who all used drugs recreationally, to contact their friend's parents with concerns about his mental state. When Bryce left home to attend community college, he did not do so by his own motivation. Karen and Mike shopped around for what school he would attend, gave him no decision in the matter, and shipped him out when the school year began. The decision was in part based on the availability of dormitories as they wanted Bryce out of the home as soon as possible, which seems in keeping of what I know to be true of their style of parenting. They sent him to Sierra College, in Rocklin, CA, which is a 460 mile drive from his parents' home in Laguna Niguel. Mike and Karen were both very controlling parents, the type that foster harsh, rebellious behavior from their kids. They sought to control every aspect of his life and used their money to do so. Bryce owned literally nothing of his own and was frequently reminded of it when he stepped out of line. To me, his actions were a great big, 'Fuck you,' to his manipulative, controlling, abusive parents. What better way to let them know you're done than by intentionally wrecking their car and leaving behind all the accoutrements they paid for with their money, and leveraged as a means of control? The time he spent in that small rural town was most likely waiting on someone to give him a ride. I believe the big story he wanted to tell his family was that he would be dropping out of school and moving elsewhere. I believe he wanted to say it to their faces but chickened out and decided that he was just going to move on. I believe his family knows this and have used the media, his friends, and so on, to wage a pressure campaign against him. I believe the police have encountered him at some point and have respected a request for silence, thus leading them to their conclusion that he is voluntarily missing. Karen is a duplicitous snake and has pushed several falsehoods throughout this ordeal, most especially the, 'Bryce was a good boy, this was totally unexpected,' narrative, when it was clear he was starting to spiral out. They never once mention that he was basically driven from the home due to his behavior. Mike isn't duplicitous, so to speak, just thick as a brick, emotionally stunted, authoritarian, and a bit spineless when it came to being an advocate for his kids. Bryce's parents regularly looked through his phone records, to see who he was associating with via calls and texts. They also somehow have control of his Facebook and email accounts, though we all know how easy it is to set up alternates. No doubt he needed a burner phone to communicate with whomever came to retrieve him. They have been trying so hard to keep the heat up on him that it's no wonder we've not seen hide nor hair of him since his disappearance. I believe that when the Laspisas moved from Chicago to Southern California, they were mainly just looking for warmer weather and a place to retire. No doubt Bryce had a lot of bad influences he left behind, but he was a social kid and well liked by most who knew him, so he didn't have trouble making friends at Sierra. I believe the person who was to meet him wasn't late, per se, but was traveling a long distance and due to changes in Bryce's plan, he had time to kill in Buttonwillow. I believe his plan was to drive to Laguna Niguel, drop off the car and everything his parents were paying for, have 'the talk' with them, then meet with his friend to depart. I suspect they were driving from multiple states away. My guess is that he went to the Pacific Northwest as he has been possibly spotted a few times in Oregon. The drive from Portland to Buttonwillow is about 13 hours, and 15-16 if coming from Seattle. The majority of Oregon sightings place him somewhere around Eugene, which is a big college town. I absolutely believe that Karen knows more than she has admitted. She is the type of person who would manufacture a massive lie to protect herself from the smallest embarrassment. Knowing what I know about that woman, I find it quite likely she said something that led Bryce to say, 'Fuck it,' and deviate from his plan. I also think she is the type of person (i.e. a malignant narcissist) who would lie to her own family about what was said as so to shield herself from the embarrassment of her complete failure as a parent and wife. If you watch her various media appearances, there is nothing genuine about her attitude or emotional state. It's all fake and rehearsed. Every photograph of her shows her making an exaggerated, forced grimace indicating emotional pain, but there is nothing genuine about it. She is a vile narcissist whose emotional expressions are sophisticated systems of manipulation, and the main reason for my posting on this matter is to expose her for the fraud that she is. Even some of her closest friends have finally noticed this and some have actively sought to keep her at arm's length, while others have walked away entirely. To my knowledge, everything Mike knows about this situation he heard from Karen, as I don't believe Mike spoke to him much during the entire ordeal. It's also very possible Bryce moved back to Chicago. That's a huge city, one which would be easy to disappear in to. His parents occasionally travel to Chicago to meet with friends and family, and they also had a pow-wow with media types there a while back, but they still live in California to this day."

This is the case I can’t let go. One time, I had an emotional breakdown and tried to drive 4.5 hours to my parents. I got maybe halfway and I couldn’t go on. Called my parents and said I was at a rest stop. Fell asleep in the car and woke up to my daddy knocking on my car window. Yep, middle of the night and he drove all that way go get me. Ever since I heard about this case, I have been so grateful my dad did that. Now that he’s gone, I realize more and more how lucky I was to have him. I could have been like Bryce. It just really gets to me.

I can't believe his parents never went out to get him, a mechanic with no real relationship to Bryce did more than them.

It's stories like these that really amplify the chaotic, unpredictable, deadly world we live in! Just passing through, just like you. Please remain in the light.

This one hits so close to home cus it's exactly how one of my housemates started to behave right before he tried to attempt. The sudden change in drinking and drug-use habits, breaking up with his gf and cutting off some friends, giving away valuable items. Of course we realized these were signs of something to come and we and his closer friends went as far as to buying him a plane ticket to go home to his family (we're all international students and his family lives in a different continent). But on the literal day of his flight, we had to rush him to the hospital after he intentionally tried to overdose. It was only later that I found out from his friends what had caused this spiral. He was horribly SA'd by a guy at a party and he just could not cope with the trauma. I can't even imagine what he must have gone through and how alone he must have felt in all of this. His family did take him back to their country. Last year a bunch of us received a message from him and he said he's doing a lot better and he thanked us for what we had done. Yes, depression is a silent killer. I have it myself. But idk if it causes such an abrupt and drastic change in lifestyle so quickly. I think with Bryce, he either had something bad done to him or he did or became complicit in some horrible act done to someone else. That's what he wanted to speak to his parents about but ultimately couldn't bring himself to do it. I applaud my housemate's family for their genuine desperation to be at his side. We were a bit worried at first since we come from a shared culture where older people think mental health issues are a myth or something to be ashamed of. But they put aside all their beliefs and only cared for him and his well-being. I'm not trying to sound nasty but I can't imagine having my child be 3 hrs away and not immediately driving to him at the first sign of trouble. When my cousin had a psychotic break, his sister flew across the world to be at his side and make sure he was safe. Bryce would still be with everyone if his parents weren't so dismissive and lacking in their initiative. Yes, hindsight is strong but if even Bryce's friends are worried to the point of calling them, you would think that they as the parent would jump into action.

“suicide? this is NOT my son.” It’s almost like a lot of depressed ppl put on a mask so that people don’t know that they’re depressed

The mechanic was so caring, he went out of his way for a complete stranger several times. The thing about suicidal people is that you can put on a happy face so no one suspects it, I’m guessing the family just can’t accept it

These missing person cases hit me hard. Had a 19 year old kid go missing where I live, I remember putting up his missing posters at work and talking to his mom, they found his body last month (he was missing for 2 years), they found his body 5 miles from where I work and I was devastated as was my coworker.

Chris is the type of person that restores my hope in humanity in this appalling world we live in these days 🙏🏼💙 hats off to him

Parents should have been driving his way the whole time after she learned Christian was having to follow him

Wow his parents are thick in the head if they think "he would nEveR" when he gave all the signs 🤦‍♀️

As a fellow Bryce, I hope he’s found and has found himself doing better

The mechanic tried harder than the parents.

Every time I hear this sad story I'm at a total loss to understand how his parents didn't drive back to him right away. They had so many opportunities. The guilt they must feel is unimaginable.

I'm half way through this video, and all I can think of is: why, the hell, the parents DIDN'T just drive to get their son? One of them could stay home, the other could drive, instead of waiting for him to come up by himself. Especially after numerous times Bryce failed to actually drive home. Come on, parents.

20 years later someone think they spotted Bryce 10 miles away from his home. The parent: let's stay home and wait. if it's him we're sure he'll come home soon.

Ppl don't fully grasp the power of a mind breaking. Fortunately, some come back from it, but the world is full of those that live on the fringes that didn't...I hope this young man found peace wherever he landed.

The moment he said he was tired of driving and wanted to take a nap after acting the way he did earlier I would have drove out with my husband to go pick my son up.. I can’t understand how they slept that night.

Christian's amazing for doing all that out of his own will when he didnt have too.

I recognized a psychotic episode.. i have a brother go through them twice. I immediately drove the 3 hours to him each time, and got him help. Most of the family was just pissed at him, as if it was his fault and he was just being difficult. You just cant predict how people will respond when it happens.

Love you mr ballen thank you for all these endless stories that you narrated so perfectly to where we understand them and always so entertaining i work in a nursing home 10pm til 6:30pm i spend all my shifts listening while im working helps keep me entertained

WTH. If that were my kid, after 3 attempts, I would have driven down there myself. Hell, I would have driven down there after the gf and bf called. And did the annoying parent thing by staying on the line the entire time. Christian is an angel. Not a lot of people would go that far. We need more neighbors, friends and human beings like him. 💖

The second he started giving away his important things, my heart dropped and I realized where this was going. I feel so bad for his friends and family, being suddenly confronted with that severe warning signs.

How heartwarming that Christian went to such lengths to help this family that were total strangers. I know from experience that many good people live in California’s San Joaquin Valley. It’s sad that, in the end, this tragedy wasn’t able to be averted.

So heartbreaking! I have only one son and I just can’t imagine the pain and grief Brice’s parents are going through. I wish they would have just gone to where he was when he just sat in his car at the rest area and then the parking lot of whatever establishment and just drove him home. I hope he’s found soon or they find out what happened to him.

I’m sorry but his parents infuriate me. If that was my son I would drive out there myself and pick him up instead of sending everyone to go check on him.

Hey Christian ( mechanic ) I hope you're reading this and know that you're one hell of a good man .

I just found out about MRBALLEN 2 days ago. I'm a truck driver and I've been beng listening to all these stories every since while I drive. Imagine driving down the road in the middle of the night listening to some of these scary stories with the dome light on because I feel theirs someone or something behind me in the cab in my bunk starring at me. 😅😅😅😅😅

The parents! I just cant 😢 Seriously??? 3 hours away and they couldnt go get him?

Tragedy and mystery aside, that is some world class car repair service right there. 10/10

For everybodys information: if someone you knows demeanor suddenly changes, they end relationships for seemingly no reason, they give away their valuables are all signs they are planning to end their life

I suffer from mental illness and was going through a tone of stress. I remember walking to my car to head to work and the next thing I know I'm waking up in a different parking lot several hours later with no memory of how I got there. For some reason, this video reminded me of it.

People always say “we need more people like them in the word” rather than saying “we need to act more like him in this world”

Who else was saying “Nooooooo” when Christian decided it was safe to stop following Bryce??

As a father of two children, that story really hit home with me, you are an amazing story teller, I was truly invested in it and actually cried non-stop for an hour after it, I hugged my kids so hard for a while after watching this(they thought I was a weirdo) I can't even process what was happening in the end.....hats off mr ballen. I haven't subscribed to anyone on you tube ever, considered it, then thought it was in poor taste to do so sorry

Sounds like Bryce might have been through something traumatic or had a dark secret of some sort. Maybe he accidentally killed someone for example. That might help explain his strange behavior

Mannnnn , a triple *SALUTE* goes out to *CHRISTIAN* for going the extra mile when nobody asked him too ✊.. The WORLD needs more people like *CHRISTIAN* in it 🤞💯

Christian the car repair man is definitely an amazing man. He went further than above and beyond anything he ever needed to do.

this story always blows my mind

She took his keys for a reason she knows him don't make her give them back i hope her conscience is clear. His parents tho he's reported missing then found but they don't drive 3 hours to get him. It took alot for his friends to call his parents. This story is wild

This is extremely frustrating. Why didn't his parents just make the three hour drive?

He literally tried to give up his most expensive possessions and got rid of his future wifey back to back in the same couple hours.. He clearly wasn't planning on being around.

Give that repair man a raise or an award or something holy shit what a great dude lol

How did the parents even sleep at night knowing what happened that day... I couldn't actually believe they just said "okay, take a nap and come home in the morning". They literally called the police that day to find Bryce... They couldn't just sit in a godamn car an drive for an hour and a half or so to pick up their son? They totally deserved this and they will have to live with it for the rest of their lives. It was their only child...

Why didn't the parents just drive up and get him when he was sitting around parking lots in that little town? Seems very weird that they'd just not think of that.

One of his parents should’ve drove to that small town where he was sitting. The other stay back in laguna and waited. That Christian did more than both of his parents.

dang I wish I had family and friends this caring and patient

Someone should have called an ambulance or waited there until his parents came and got him. This was clearly some kind of medical emergency he was having, stroke, psychotic break, suicide attempt, whatever it was it could have easily been fixed if someone came and detained him.

Why was Christian willing to drive nearly two hours to make sure he got home and the parents didn't even meet him half way 😭😭

So you’re telling me they knew exactly where he was several time but decided to repeat a conversation on the phone over and over again expecting a different outcome

His parents have to live with the fact they didn't just go and pick him up, it's very clear he wasn't in the right frame of mind. Sad story

This guy literally didn't have to go missing. There were so many opportunities to save him. Christian the Mechanic cared more than his parents.