Brandon Lawson: The Unsolved Disappearance in Texas

In today’s society, where practically everyone owns a cell phone and a social media account that is relevant to news happening at any precise moment, it’s hard to contemplate modern crimes going unresolved, especially when it involves someone disappearing. Sadly, unexplained mysteries still occur. One such baffling mystery that has perplexed many online web sleuths is Brandon Lawson — a name that is synonymous with many words: Blue collared. Hard worker. Loving father. Family man. Loyal Husband. Missing.

Brandon Lawson grew up in Crowley, Texas. When he was 16-years-old in high school, he met 15-year-old Ladessa Lofton. As soon as they met, they seemed destined for each other and have been together ever since, but like many relationships, there were rough patches. Nevertheless, the two always managed to work through the issues.

After high school, the couple lived in Fort Worth, Texas until early 2012 when they transitioned to San Angelo, Texas to start anew with their four children. By August 2013, life for the family had been going well, though they were dealing with normal eustress. They were still adjusting to their new living arrangments, and in order to provide for the family, Brandon proudly worked as an oil field worker for Renegade Oil Services — often performing arduous overtime hours.

On the evening of Thursday, August 8, 2013, things were going seemingly well. Brandon had been away for the majority of the afternoon, but once he returned home he and Ladessa got into an argument — a typical spout most couples have at one point; brought upon by raising four children, one of whom was a newborn baby battling an ear infection, money, bills, and because Brandon didn’t come home the previous night.

After the quarrel, Brandon grabbed his keys, wallet, cell-phone, and wall-charger and decided to leave home at approximately 11:53 p.m. Although being low on gas, he called his father asking if he could stay with him for the night, despite his residence being three hours away in Crowley, Texas. His father, Brad, obliged but urged Brandon to reconsider and return home to mend things with Ladessa since it was late and a long exhausting drive.

Seven minutes after Brandon left home, Ladessa called him to reconcile their differences. She suggested that if he was still angry and didn’t want to come home, he should go to his brother’s home, who only lived five minutes away with his girlfriend Audrey and 4-year-old son, and spend the night there until everything had smoothed over.

Two minutes later at 12:38 a.m. Brandon called his brother. He stated that his truck ran out of gas on Highway 277 near Bronte, Texas, and he needed assistance. A few minutes later Kyle called Ladessa and told her about the situation unfolding.

Subsequently, both Kyle and Audrey drive over to retrieve the gas can for Brandon at 12:45 a.m. This is where things take a very confounding and unexpected turn that has yet to be explained.

At 12:48 a.m. Brandon attempted to call Ladessa for the third time but she doesn’t respond. Six minutes later at 12:54 a.m. a nursing home located in Robert Lee, Texas, receives a frantic .43 seconds long 911 Emergency phone call from Brandon.

911 Call Transcript:

Operator: 911 Emergency.

Brandon: Yes, I’m in the middle of a field [Unintelligible] just pushed some guys over. We’re out here going towards Abilene on both sides. My truck ran out of gas. There’s one car here. A guy’s [chasing me?] through the woods. Please hurry!

Operator: Okay. Now run that by me one more…

Brandon: [Talking over the operator]: There’ll be no talking to ‘em. I accidentally ran into ‘em.

Operator: Oh, you ran into them? Okay.

Brandon: [Unintelligible] the first guy.

Operator: Do you need an ambulance?

Brandon: Yeah! No, I need the cops.

Operator: Okay. Is anybody hurt?

Brandon: [Unintelligible]

Operator: Hello? Hello? Hello?

From this point onward, Brandon doesn’t respond to the operator, but the background noise seems to get closer to the phone.

Four minutes after the phone call, a passing truck driver notices an abandoned pick-up truck with the license plate 76L-SY8 parked haphazardly on the highway and informs 911 about the issue.

When Kyle and Audrey arrive at Brandon’s pickup truck on the desolate stretch of highway twelve minutes later at 1:10 a.m., they are surprised to see Deputy Neal from the Coke County Sheriff’s Office, who arrived at the same time from the opposite direction. Both parties didn’t see any vehicles or suspicious activity on the highway on their way to Brandon’s truck.

At the time, Kyle and Audrey had no reason to be concerned for Brandon’s safety. They initially assumed he was hiding in nearby bushes because he had an outstanding warrant for an old drug charge. As a result, they made several attempts to contact Brandon and finally managed to get ahold of him. Brandon promptly mentioned he was ten minutes away in a field and bleeding, and requested to get to him quickly. The signal soon faded away and the phone call ended. Immediately afterward at 1:19 a.m. Audrey texted Brandon saying, “Hey, bro, the cops are at your truck,” but he never responded.

Meanwhile, Deputy Neal does a quick search of Brandon’s pick-up truck. Despite the odd positioning, there had been no damage dealt on the exterior, and all the doors were unlocked. Inside, the truck seats were empty, along with the keys and Brandon’s wallet. Due to the truck being parked unsafely, Neal turned on Brandon’s hazard lights, locked the doors, and ordered a tow to pick up the truck at 8:00 a.m. and proceeded to leave the scene without running Brandon’s license plate.

Once Deputy Neal was out of view, Kyle and Audrey tried contacting Brandon via cell phone but he never responded. They called off the search at 3:00 a.m. because Brandon’s cell phone had completely stopped ringing — indicating it had been shut off or had no battery power.

On the way home, Kyle called Ladessa to inform her he couldn’t locate Brandon. Two days later on August 11, 2013, a small search was conducted for four hours without any signs of Brandon. With a lack of any pivotal updates, the consensus amongst Texas Rangers was that Brandon, if alive, is no longer in Coke County.

The following day on August 12, 2013, Ladessa was able to retrieve Brandon’s phone records. While she was combing through them, it was made evident that he placed a 911 phone call shortly before vanishing. Rightfully so, she and her family made their contempt and dissatisfaction known for law enforcement concealing this fact.

After several days had gone by without any contact or update on Brandon, Ladessa filed a missing person’s report on Tuesday, August 13, 2013. Multiple subsequent searches were attempted near the private property where the truck was located but the landowners only permitted limited access.

One week after Brandon mysteriously disappeared, an official search was conducted on Tuesday, August 16, 2013. The search consisted of aerial coverage with infrared lights, search dogs, and more, but nothing was gleaned. Another search was performed two weeks later on Thursday, August 29, 2013 — this time with large investigative units including the Coke County Sheriff’s Office, Texas Rangers, Tom Green County Sheriff’s Office, Highway Patrol, Search and Rescue. They covered over 2,500 acres, but once again nothing was discovered.

A few months after Brandon disappeared, Kyle Lawson was considered a suspect and was brought in for questioning. He willingly asked for a polygraph test and passed with flying colors.

Since then, no updates have been made since Brandon’s initial disappearance. What is known is that there has been no activity from Brandon’s Motorola Droid Razr cell phone or his bank account. They don’t believe that he would voluntarily disappear and start fresh; it’s simply not characteristic of him to abandon his family, especially his children. Cases like the disappearance of Amanda Kay Jones show how modern missing persons cases can linger for years without resolution, and Brandon’s case is no exception.

Brandon Mason Lawson’s memory still lives on with his infectious smile and goofy attitude emanating from his children. Though he has been absent for a long time, there is a red and white cross placed in the ground where his truck was last seen, not to represent despair; rather a memorial of hope that one day Brandon will return home safe and sound. Like the case of Asha Degree, who vanished without a trace under equally mysterious circumstances, Brandon’s disappearance reminds us that some cases defy explanation. The vanishing of Andrew Gosden, a fourteen-year-old who boarded a one-way train to London and was never seen again, carries the same unanswerable quality: a person who was present, then was not, with no physical evidence to explain the gap. Advances in investigative technology, including genetic genealogy breakthroughs, continue to offer hope that answers may still come.

Sources

• Missing Brandon Lawson — Family Website
• Brandon Lawson — The Charley Project
• Help Find Brandon Lawson — Facebook
• San Angelo Standard-Times — Lawson Coverage
• Coke County Sheriff’s Office, Texas

Frequently Asked Questions

What did Brandon Lawson say in his 911 call?

Brandon’s 911 call, placed at 12:54 a.m. on August 9, 2013, lasted 43 seconds and remains one of the most analyzed pieces of evidence in the case. He told the operator he was in the middle of a field and that someone was chasing him through the woods. Several portions of the call are unintelligible, which has led to extensive debate among online communities about what he was actually describing. He requested police rather than an ambulance, suggesting he felt threatened by another person.

Has Brandon Lawson’s body ever been found?

No. Despite multiple organized searches covering over 2,500 acres — including aerial coverage with infrared technology and search dogs — no remains or physical evidence of Brandon have ever been recovered. There has also been no activity on his cell phone or bank account since the night he disappeared.

Why didn’t law enforcement tell the family about the 911 call?

This is one of the most controversial aspects of the case. Brandon’s family did not learn about his 911 call until Ladessa retrieved his phone records on August 12, 2013 — four days after he vanished. The family has publicly expressed frustration with how law enforcement handled the early hours and days of the investigation, including the fact that Deputy Neal left the scene without running Brandon’s license plate.

What are the main theories about Brandon Lawson’s disappearance?

Several theories have been discussed extensively online. Some believe Brandon encountered foul play from unknown individuals near the highway, which his 911 call seems to support. Others suggest he may have become disoriented and succumbed to the harsh rural Texas terrain. The unintelligible portions of his 911 call have fueled considerable speculation, with different listeners interpreting the audio in very different ways.

Where did Brandon Lawson disappear?

Brandon’s truck was found on Highway 277 near Bronte, Texas, in Coke County. The area is a remote, sparsely populated stretch of rural highway surrounded by open fields and brush land. During his last phone call with his brother, Brandon said he was ten minutes away from his truck, in a field, and that he was bleeding.