BACKGROUND:
Shane Sprenger was born in 1974 to Marge and Eldor Sprenger. He grew up on a farm in Minnesota with his four sisters, and would eventually move out west to Oregon with a girlfriend.
He started his own construction company and spent free time outdoors. He was a hard worker, often working from dusk to dawn. People spoke highly of him and the kind of person he was.
Sometime after moving to Oregon, Shane’s girlfriend passed away. He later met and married Crystal.
Early September 2020, a wildfire devastated the community and Shane, along with so many others, lost everything. His hope wasn’t lost however. He and Crystal lived in a travel trailer until he was able to build their dream home in Vida, Oregon. Unfortunately, though, this would never happen.
THE CASE:
November 2, 2021.
It was an ordinary Tuesday for Shane Sprenger. His day began at a worksite near McKenzie Bridge. This was twenty-three miles from his home. He left work around 9:30am to go home and was never seen again.
Three days later, Shane’s truck was found abandoned near the Blue River Reservoir, 16 miles from home. In other circumstances, this wouldn’t be unusual because the area was a popular spot for mushroom hunting. But when Shane left work that day, he’d left his tools plugged in and had plans to meet with a subcontractor. Everything indicated he’d be returning to work after his stop at home.
The day his truck was found was the day a missing report was filed. An entire three days after the last time he was seen. Reports show the friend that found his truck was the same one that reported him missing. The following day, his family in Minnesota learned he was missing. They immediately traveled to Oregon to aid in his search.
During this time, the family was surprised by Crystal’s behavior. She didn’t report him missing, nor did she help in the search. More details started surfacing. Crystal had a drug problem. She and Shane had ongoing marital problems and even discussed divorce at one point.
The family felt Shane’s disappearance wasn’t innocent. It wasn’t like him to go this long without contacting his family.
One of his sisters suggests there are four people of interests in Shane’s disappearance. These are the same people that were on his property that final day. His wife, Crystal; his best friend, Justin (who was an ex-employee and lived on Shane’s property in a separate trailer; he also had an addiction problem); a homeless man, Ray (lived on Shane’s old property); and a man named Eric. (There aren’t many details on Eric. Justin mentioned him being asleep in Shane’s trailer and Shane was very upset about it.)
Another important fact… These same four people have inconsistencies in their stories or their stories changed throughout the investigation.
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Shane Sprenger’s remains were found in late 2022, about a year after he’d gone missing. They were found five miles from where his truck was located. (The identity wasn’t verified until testing was complete in June 2023.)
THEORIES:
It’s possible his remains washed ashore from the nearby McKenzie River. Did he hit his head and fall in? Was it suicide?
Some thought he ran off intentionally because of his awful marriage.
AUTHOR’S NOTES:
This case has me so intrigued, but it’s difficult to find information. Everything, in my opinion, indicates this was murder. And my gut says those four people of interests are people of interests for good reasons.
I feel like there are a lot of holes in the case. The fact that his remains were found and little else is known is so strange.
Most of the details I have come from The Vanished Podcast, which I highly recommend. In the podcast, we’re able to hear interviews with the family, so we know the information is authentic.
SOURCES:
- The Vanished Podcast
- KMTR
Lore & Curiosities 