In March of 2014, four friends from Dallas, Texas set out on a weekend camping trip to the Casache National Forest in central Louisiana.

They were experienced outdoorsmen who had made similar trips together for years.

And none of them expected that this journey would be any different from the dozens they had taken before.

The group consisted of Colin Hayes, a 29-year-old construction supervisor, his childhood friend Derek Pullman, 31, who worked as an equipment operator for the same company, Justin Lamb, 27, a freelance photographer who documented their trips, and Andrew Finch, 33, a mechanic who owned a small auto repair shop in the suburbs of Dallas.

According to their families, the four men had been planning this trip for months and were excited to explore a section of the forest they had never visited before.

They left Dallas early on the morning of March 14th, driving in two vehicles, a silver Chevrolet Tahoe registered to Colin Hayes and a dark blue Dodge Ram pickup truck owned by Andrew Finch.

The plan, as described in text messages recovered later from their phones, was to camp near the Saline Bayou area, fish in the nearby streams, and hike through the less traveled sections of the forest.

They told their families they would return by Monday evening, March 17th, giving them three full days in the wilderness.

None of them made it back.

The alarm was raised on the evening of March 18th, when Colin Hayes failed to show up for work.

His supervisor at the construction company called his cell phone repeatedly throughout the morning, but received no answer.

By midday, concerned colleagues contacted his wife, Amanda Hayes, who confirmed that Colin had not returned from the camping trip and had not called or sent any messages since Saturday afternoon.

She immediately tried calling the other members of the group, but none of their phones were reachable.

All four numbers went directly to voicemail.

Amanda Hayes contacted the families of the other men and discovered that none of them had heard from their loved ones either.

Derek Pullman’s girlfriend had expected him home Sunday night and had already filed an informal inquiry with the local police.

Justin Lamb’s mother, who lived alone and spoke to her son almost every day, had been trying to reach him since Monday morning with no success.

Andrew Finch’s brother, who managed the auto repair shop in his absence, reported that Andrew had missed two scheduled appointments that morning, which was completely out of character.

By late afternoon on March 18th, the families gathered at the Hayes residence and collectively decided to report the men missing to the Dallas Police Department.

Because the men were last known to be traveling to Louisiana, the Dallas authorities immediately contacted the Nacates Parish Sheriff’s Office, which has jurisdiction over the area of Casachi National Forest where the men had planned to camp.

An official missing person’s report was filed that evening and a coordinated search effort was scheduled to begin at First Light the following day.

The search operation commenced on the morning of March 19th.

A team of sheriff’s deputies, forest rangers, and volunteer search crews assembled at the Saline Bayou entrance point, which was identified as the most likely location based on the text messages sent by the men before their phones stopped transmitting.

According to the cellular service provider records obtained by investigators, the last known location data from all four phones placed them within a 3m radius of the Saline Bayou Recreational Area.

The final message sent by any member of the group was a text from Justin Lamb to his mother at in the afternoon on March 15th.

The message read, “Great spot.

Lots of trails will call tomorrow.” After that timestamp, there was no further communication from any of the four men.

Search teams combed the area around Saline Bayou for the next 5 days.

They located the two vehicles parked side by side on a gravel access road approximately half a mile from the main campground.

Both vehicles were locked, showed no signs of forced entry or struggle, and appeared to be in normal condition.

Inside the Tahoe, investigators found a cooler with melted ice and spoiled food, two sleeping bags still rolled and secured with straps, and a portable camping stove.

The Dodge Ram contained fishing rods, tackle boxes, a tent that had not been unpacked, and several backpacks with clothing and personal items.

Notably, the keys to both vehicles were missing.

The discovery of the vehicles confirmed that the men had arrived at their intended destination, but it raised more questions than it answered.

If they had parked the cars and gone into the forest on foot, why had they not set up camp nearby as they usually did? Why were the tents still packed? And most troubling, where were they now? Search dogs were brought in on the third day of the operation.

The animals picked up human scent trails leading away from the vehicles and into the dense forest, but the trails were inconsistent and faded quickly, likely due to rain that had fallen in the area over the previous weekend.

According to the weather station in Nacadesh, there had been moderate to heavy rainfall on the night of March 15th and into the early morning hours of March 16th, which would have washed away tracks, sent markers, and any other physical evidence that might have indicated the direction the men had traveled.

Helicopters equipped with thermal imaging cameras flew over the forest canopy, scanning for heat signatures that might indicate people on the ground.

The searches turned up nothing.

Ground crews explored every marked trail within a 5mi radius and checked abandoned hunting cabins, old logging roads, and natural clearings where someone might take shelter.

They found no trace of the missing men.

No clothing, no equipment, no signs of campfires or temporary shelters.

It was as if the four friends had simply walked into the forest and vanished.

On March 24th, after 6 days of intensive searching with no results, the official operation was scaled back.

The sheriff’s office issued a public statement acknowledging that while the search would continue on a limited basis, the likelihood of finding the men alive was diminishing with each passing day.

The families refused to accept this.

They organized their own search parties, printing flyers with photographs of all four men and distributing them throughout Nacadesh Parish and surrounding counties.

Volunteers from Dallas drove to Louisiana to help comb the forest.

Local news stations ran stories about the disappearance, urging anyone with information to contact authorities.

But despite the widespread attention and the efforts of dozens of people, no new leads emerged.

The case remained open.

But as weeks turned into months, public interest faded and the families were left with only questions and grief.

Theories circulated among investigators and the families.

Some believed the men had gotten lost in the forest and succumbed to the elements, though this seemed unlikely given their experience and the fact that the weather, aside from the rain, had been mild.

Others suspected foul play, perhaps an encounter with someone in the forest who meant them harm.

But there was no evidence to support this theory.

A few considered the possibility of a wildlife attack, though rangers pointed out that while black bears and alligators inhabit the region, fatal attacks on groups of adult men are extraordinarily rare.

The most frustrating aspect of the case was the complete absence of physical evidence.

In most missing persons cases involving wilderness areas, searchers eventually find something.

A piece of clothing snagged on a branch, a dropped flashlight, a shoe, footprints in mud.

In this case, there was nothing.

It was as though the four men had been erased.

The investigation continued in a limited capacity throughout 2014 and into 2015.

Detectives periodically reviewed the case files, reinterviewed witnesses, and followed up on tips that occasionally came in from people claiming to have seen the men or their vehicles.

None of these leads produced any credible information.

By early 2016, the case had gone cold.

The families held memorial services, though without bodies, they could not find true closure.

The disappearance of Colin Hayes, Derek Pullman, Justin Lamb, and Andrew Finch became one of those unsolved mysteries that haunt a community.

A story told in hush tones, a reminder of how quickly the familiar can become strange and how easily people can be lost.

Then, in April of 2018, something changed.

A discovery was made in the soil of Casachi National Forest.

A discovery so unexpected and so disturbing that it forced investigators to reopen the case and confront the possibility that what happened to those four men was far worse than anyone had imagined.

The discovery that brought the case back to life happened almost by accident during a routine operation that had nothing to do with the missing men.

On April 12th, 2018, a crew from the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries was conducting a habitat restoration project along a degraded section of wetland approximately 7 mi northeast of the Saline Bayou area where the four men had last been seen.

The project involved clearing invasive plant species and rebuilding eroded banks along a shallow tributary that fed into the larger waterway system.

The work required heavy machinery, including a backho used to remove thick root systems and dig drainage channels to redirect water flow.

It was during one of these excavation efforts that the backho operator, a contractor named Gerald Witmore, struck something solid beneath the soil.

According to his official statement given to investigators later that same day, he initially thought the machine had hit a large rock or a piece of old construction debris, which was not uncommon in areas that had once been used for logging operations.

He climbed down from the cab to inspect the obstruction and clear it manually if possible.

When he knelt down and brushed away the loose dirt from the edge of the trench, he saw something that made him stop immediately.

partially exposed in the dark, wet soil, was a curved white object with a smooth surface.

It took him only a moment to realize what he was looking at.

It was a human skull.

Whitmore stepped back from the trench and immediately radioed his site supervisor, who in turn contacted the Nacadesh Parish Sheriff’s Office.

Within an hour, deputies arrived at the location along with a forensic team from the Louisiana State Police.

The area was cordoned off and the excavation work was halted.

A forensic anthropologist was called in to oversee the careful removal of the remains.

What they found was both significant and deeply troubling.

The skull was buried approximately 18 in below the surface, nestled in a layer of compact clay and organic matter that had preserved it reasonably well despite the passage of time.

The bone was stained dark brown from prolonged contact with the soil and was covered in a thin layer of dirt and root fibers.

But the most striking feature, the detail that immediately set this discovery apart from a typical forensic recovery, was the presence of a rusted metal object protruding from the back of the skull.

It was an arrow.

The arrow had entered through the rear of the skull at a downward angle, penetrated the bone completely, and emerged through the front just above the right eye socket.

The shaft had long since rotted away, but the arrow head itself, a triangular broadhead style made of iron or steel, remained embedded in the bone.

Rust had eaten away much of the metal surface, but the shape and structure were still clearly recognizable.

This was not a modern hunting arrow.

The design and the level of corrosion suggested that the weapon was old, possibly decades old, though determining the exact age would require further analysis.

The forensic team worked methodically over the next several hours, carefully excavating the surrounding soil in a grid pattern to ensure that no other remains or evidence were missed.

They sifted through each layer of dirt, checking for bone fragments, personal items, or anything else that might provide context for the burial.

Despite their thorough efforts, no additional human remains were found in the immediate area.

There were no other bones, no clothing, no identification, nothing that could immediately tell them who this person was or how long they had been buried there.

The skull was transported to the Louisiana State Police Crime Laboratory in Baton Rouge for examination.

A forensic pathologist conducted a preliminary analysis and confirmed that the skull belonged to an adult male, likely between the ages of 25 and 40, based on the structure of the bone and the degree of dental wear.

The teeth were intact, which meant that dental records could potentially be used for identification if a match could be found.

The arrow wound was examined in detail under laboratory conditions.

The pathologist noted that the point of entry at the back of the skull showed characteristics consistent with a penetrating trauma inflicted while the victim was alive.

There were micro fractures radiating outward from the entry point, a pattern that occurs when bone is struck with force while still living tissue surrounds it.

This meant that the arrow had not been placed in the skull after death.

It had killed the person.

The trajectory of the arrow entering from behind and traveling at a downward angle suggested that the victim had been struck from an elevated position or while in a crouched or kneeling posture.

The force required to drive an arrow head completely through a human skull is considerable, indicating either a powerful bow or a close-range shot.

In either case, the injury would have been immediately fatal or caused death within minutes.

The question of identity became the next focus of the investigation.

The Nacatesh Parish Sheriff’s Office began cross-referencing the discovery with all open missing persons cases in the region from the past 20 years.

Given the location of the burial site and the time frame suggested by the condition of the remains, investigators quickly turned their attention to the 2014 disappearance of Colin Hayes, Derek Pullman, Justin Lamb, and Andrew Finch.

The proximity of the burial site to the area where the men had last been seen, combined with the fact that their case had never been resolved, made it a logical starting point.

Dental records were requested from the families of all four men.

The process of obtaining these records took several days as some of the men had not visited a dentist in years, and their families had to track down old files from clinics that had since closed or changed ownership.

By April 18th, the laboratory had received dental records for three of the four men.

Colin Hayes had comprehensive dental records from a clinic in Dallas that included X-rays taken less than a year before his disappearance.

Derek Pullman’s records were older, but still usable.

Andrew Finch had undergone significant dental work in his 20s, and his records were detailed and well preserved.

Justin Lamb’s records were incomplete.

He had not been to a dentist in over 5 years and the only records available were from a childhood orthodontist and were deemed insufficient for a definitive comparison.

The forensic odontologist compared the skulls dental structure with the records provided.

The process involved matching the size, shape, and position of the teeth as well as any unique features such as fillings, chips, or abnormalities.

After a thorough comparison, the odontologist reached a conclusion.

The skull did not match Colin Hayes.

It did not match Derek Pullman, but it was a definitive match for Andrew Finch.

The identification was confirmed through a secondary analysis, and the results were reported to the sheriff’s office on April 20th, 2018.

Andrew Finch, the 33-year-old mechanic who had vanished along with his three friends more than 4 years earlier, had been found, or at least part of him had.

The confirmation of identity brought a flood of emotions for the Finch family.

Andrew’s brother, who had spent years searching for answers, was notified by investigators in a private meeting.

He later described the moment as a mixture of relief and horror.

Relief because after so long, they finally knew something concrete.

Horror because the manner of death raised questions that were even more disturbing than the uncertainty they had lived with.

If Andrew had been killed with an arrow and buried in the forest, what had happened to the other three men? And who was responsible? The discovery of the skull triggered an immediate escalation of the investigation.

The Nacatesh Parish Sheriff’s Office with assistance from the Louisiana State Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation reopen the case as a homicide.

A new search operation was organized, this time focused on the area surrounding the burial site.

Cadaavver dogs were brought in to sweep the wetlands and forested zones within a 2-m radius.

Ground penetrating radar was used to scan sections of the forest floor for additional burial sites.

Divers were sent into the deeper sections of the bayou and surrounding waterways to search for submerged remains.

The operation lasted for 2 weeks and involved more than 50 personnel.

Investigators combed through dense underbrush, waited through swamps, and explored abandoned structures scattered throughout the forest.

They found debris, animal bones, old camping equipment left behind by years of visitors, but no further human remains, no additional skulls, no bones belonging to Colin Hayes, Derek Pullman, or Justin Lamb.

It was as if Andrew Finch had been separated from the group and buried alone, while the others had simply disappeared into nothing.

The investigation shifted to understanding the significance of the arrow.

Forensic analysis determined that the arrow head was consistent with designs used in traditional archery and hunting common in the southern United States from the 1970s through the early 2000s.

The metal composition suggested it was not a commercially mass-roduced modern broadhead, but rather a style that might have been handmade or purchased from specialty retailers catering to traditional bow hunters.

This was an important clue.

It indicated that whoever had killed Andrew Finch was likely someone with experience in archery, possibly someone who preferred older or unconventional hunting methods.

Investigators began compiling a list of individuals in the region known to use traditional bows for hunting.

This was a difficult task because such activities are not typically registered or tracked unless they result in violations of hunting regulations.

However, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries maintained records of hunting licenses, violations, and complaints, and these files were reviewed for anyone with a history involving archery or unusual hunting practices.

Several names emerged from the records, but one in particular caught the attention of investigators.

His name was Raymond Ducet, a 52-year-old resident of a small unincorporated community called Bellwood, located roughly 12 mi west of the area where Andrew Finch’s skull had been found.

Ducet lived alone on a 40 acre property that bordered the edge of Casache National Forest.

According to property records, he had owned the land since 1999 and had built a small cabin there where he lived year round.

Neighbors described him as reclusive and unfriendly, someone who kept to himself and did not welcome visitors.

He had no close family in the area and rarely came into town except to buy supplies or fuel for his truck.

What made Ducid a person of interest was not just his proximity to the forest, but his history.

A search of law enforcement databases revealed that he had been cited multiple times over the years for hunting violations.

In 2003, he was fined for hunting deer out of season.

In 2007, he received a warning for setting illegal traps on public land.

In 2011, he was briefly detained after a confrontation with a park ranger who had found him hunting in a restricted zone with a traditional longbow, a weapon that fit the profile investigators were now looking for.

The rangers report from that incident noted that Ducet had been uncooperative and hostile, refusing to provide identification until threatened with arrest.

He was ultimately released with a citation, but the encounter left an impression.

The ranger described him as someone who seemed to view the forest as his own territory and resented any outside presence.

Investigators decided that Raymond Ducet warranted further scrutiny.

On April 28th, 2018, two detectives from the Nacatesh Parish Sheriff’s Office drove out to Ducid’s property to conduct what they described as a preliminary interview.

They did not have a warrant and were not planning to make an arrest.

The goal was simply to talk to him, to gauge his behavior, and to determine whether he might have any information relevant to the case.

The property was accessed by a narrow dirt road that wounded through dense pine forest for nearly a mile before opening into a clearing where the cabin stood.

The structure was modest, built from rough cut lumber with a rusted metal roof and a covered porch cluttered with old tools, animal traps, and firewood.

A faded green pickup truck was parked near the cabin.

As the detectives pulled up, they noticed that the surrounding area was littered with debris, tarps stretched between trees, plastic barrels, stacks of wooden pallets, and what appeared to be animal hides hanging from a rail to dry.

When the detective stepped out of their vehicle, Raymond Ducid emerged from the cabin.

He was a tall man, lean and weathered, with a graying beard and deep set eyes that seemed to assess the visitors with suspicion before they even spoke.

He did not greet them.

According to the report filed later, one of the detectives introduced himself and explained that they were investigating a case involving remains found in the forest and were speaking to residents in the area to see if anyone had noticed unusual activity over the past few years.

Ducet’s response was Curt.

He said he had not seen anything and did not know anything about any remains.

He did not ask for details.

He did not express surprise or concern.

He simply stated that he minded his own business and expected others to do the same.

The detectives asked if he recalled seeing any strangers or campers in the area around March of 2014.

Det paused before answering, then said he did not keep track of people coming and going in the forest.

When asked if he used a bow for hunting, he confirmed that he did, but stated that it was legal and none of their concern.

One of the detectives noted in his report that Ducet’s demeanor throughout the conversation was defensive and evasive, though not openly hostile.

He answered questions with the minimum number of words and volunteered no additional information.

The interaction lasted less than 10 minutes before Ducet made it clear that the conversation was over.

He told the detectives that unless they had a warrant, they were trespassing on his property and needed to leave.

The detectives complied, but both agreed on the drive back that Raymond Ducet was someone they needed to watch closely.

There was something in his manner, a guardedness that went beyond ordinary privacy that suggested he was hiding something.

Over the next several days, investigators conducted background research on Ducet.

They discovered that he had moved to Louisiana in the late 1990s after spending most of his earlier life in eastern Texas.

He had worked sporadically in manual labor jobs, logging, construction, and equipment maintenance, but had no stable employment history.

He had never been married and had no children.

His only known relatives were a sister in Texas who had not spoken to him in over a decade and a deceased mother whose estate he had inherited, providing him the funds to purchase the land in Bellwood.

More troubling were the reports from locals.

Investigators spoke to several residents of the Bellwood area and nearby communities.

A store clerk recalled that Ducet would sometimes come in with game meat to sell rabbit, squirrel, wild pig, though she could not say for certain whether it was always legally obtained.

A former neighbor mentioned that Ducet had once threatened him for walking too close to his property line, shouting that trespassor would be dealt with.

Another individual, a retired ranger, remembered Ducet from years back and described him as someone who seemed to believe the forest belonged to him and resented anyone who used it.

None of these accounts constituted evidence of a crime, but they painted a picture of a man who was territorial, aggressive, and deeply familiar with the woods where Andrew Finch had been found.

Investigators wanted to search Ducid’s property, but they needed probable cause to obtain a warrant.

The fact that he owned a bow and lived near the burial site was not enough.

They needed something more concrete.

That breakthrough came in early May when forensic analysts completed a more detailed examination of the arrow head removed from Andrew Finch’s skull.

Using a scanning electron microscope, they were able to identify trace elements embedded in the rust and corrosion on the metal surface.

Among these trace elements were microscopic particles of a specific type of wood fiber consistent with pine and residues of an adhesive compound that had likely been used to attach fletching to the arrow shaft.

The adhesive contained a chemical signature that matched a type of glue commonly used in handmade arrows, particularly those crafted by traditional archery enthusiasts.

More importantly, the lab was able to extract a partial fingerprint from a section of the arrow head where corrosion had been less severe.

It was not a complete print, only a fragment, but it was enough to run through the fingerprint database maintained by the FBI.

On May 9th, the results came back.

The partial print matched a fingerprint on file for Raymond Ducet.

The print had been taken years earlier during a background check related to a firearms purchase.

It was not a perfect match due to the partial nature of the recovered print, but forensic experts rated the comparison as a highly probable match, sufficient to establish a connection between Ducet and the weapon that had killed Andrew Finch.

This was the evidence investigators needed.

On May 11th, 2018, a judge issued a search warrant for Raymond Ducet’s property and an arrest warrant for Ducet himself on suspicion of murder.

The operation was planned carefully.

Given Ducet’s known hostility toward law enforcement and his familiarity with the terrain, authorities decided to execute the warrant with a tactical team present.

Early on the morning of May 12th, more than a dozen officers, including sheriff’s deputies, state police, and a SWAT unit, assembled at a staging area several miles from Ducid’s cabin.

They approached the property just after dawn, using multiple vehicles to block the access road and prevent any possibility of escape.

When the convoy reached the clearing, they found Ducet’s truck parked in the same spot it had been during the earlier visit, but there was no sign of Ducet himself.

Officers surrounded the cabin and announced their presence over a loudspeaker, ordering Ducet to come out with his hands visible.

There was no response.

After several minutes of repeated commands, the tactical team entered the cabin.

Inside, they found the space cluttered and dimly lit with a single room serving as living area, kitchen, and bedroom.

There were shelves lined with jars of preserved food, a wood burning stove, a narrow bed, and a table covered with tools and hunting equipment.

But Raymond Dusa was not there.

A search of the immediate area around the cabin revealed no sign of him.

His truck was present, which meant he had not driven away, but the surrounding forest offered countless places to hide.

Officers spread out and began combing the property, checking out buildings, sheds, and the dense woods that pressed in on all sides.

It was during this search that they found something that would prove critical to the investigation.

Behind the cabin, partially concealed under a tarp weighted down with stones, was a workbench.

On the bench were the tools and materials used for crafting arrows.

There were bundles of wooden dowels, containers of adhesive, spools of thread for wrapping fletching, and several dozen arrow heads in various stages of completion.

Some were new and shiny, others were old and showed signs of use.

Forensic technicians photographed everything and collected samples for analysis.

Nearby, leaning against the wall of a shed, was a long bow.

It was a traditional style bow roughly 6 feet in length made from laminated wood with a leather grip.

The draw weight was estimated at over 70 lb, more than enough to drive an arrow through a human skull.

The bow was seized as evidence.

Inside the shed, investigators found other items of interest.

There were plastic storage bins filled with clothing, some of it appearing worn and stained.

There were bags of various personal items, watches, wallets, small electronics, and identification cards.

Among these items, investigators found a Texas driver’s license belonging to Colin Hayes.

They found a wallet with credit cards in the name of Derek Pullman.

They found a wristwatch engraved with the initials JL, which matched the description of a watch owned by Justin Lamb.

According to his family, these discoveries were documented immediately and photographed in place before being collected as evidence.

The presence of personal items belonging to all three of the missing men provided a direct link between Raymond Ducet and the victims.

It was no longer a matter of suspicion or circumstantial connection.

These were the belongings of men who had vanished.

Found in the possession of a man who lived in the forest where one of them had been buried with an arrow through his skull.

The search for Raymond Ducet continued throughout the day and into the following morning.

Officers established a perimeter around the property and expanded the search grid into the surrounding forest.

Tracking dogs were brought in and followed sent trails that led away from the cabin and deeper into the woods, but the trails eventually dissipated in areas of thick undergrowth and standing water.

Helicopters equipped with infrared cameras scan the canopy from above, looking for heat signatures that might indicate a person hiding beneath the trees.

Despite these efforts, Ducet remained elusive.

Investigators began to suspect that he had either fled the area before the warrant was executed or had gone to ground in a location he had prepared in advance, somewhere deep in the forest that only he knew about.

Given his decades of living on the edge of the wilderness and his apparent skill in moving through the terrain undetected, this seemed increasingly likely.

While the manhunt continued, forensic teams worked to process the evidence collected from the property.

The items found in the shed were examined in detail.

The driver’s license belonging to Colin Hayes was photographed and checked against records.

The photograph on the license matched the missing man, and the issue date confirmed it had been current at the time of his disappearance.

The wallet containing Derek Pullman’s credit cards also held a small photograph of his girlfriend, a detail that his family confirmed as accurate.

The wristwatch with the initials JL was shown to Justin Lamb’s mother, who positively identified it as a gift she had given her son on his 25th birthday.

He had been wearing it the day he left for the camping trip.

The presence of these items raised a critical question.

If Ducid had killed Andrew Finch and buried his body in the forest, what had he done with the other three men? Their personal belongings were in his possession, but their remains had not been found despite extensive searches.

Investigators considered several possibilities.

One theory was that the other men had been killed in different locations and their bodies disposed of in ways that made recovery unlikely.

The forest contains swamps, sinkholes, and waterways where remains could be submerged or scattered by animals.

Another possibility was that the bodies had been burned or otherwise destroyed, leaving little or no trace.

The absence of remains did not mean the men were still alive.

Given the evidence, it seemed far more likely that all four had met the same fate as Andrew Finch.

The forensic examination of the arrowheads found on Ducet’s workbench provided additional insights.

Several of the arrow heads were compared with the one recovered from Andrew Finch’s skull.

While the embedded arrow head was severely corroded, the general design and dimensions matched several of the unused arrowheads found on the property.

Metallergical analysis confirmed that the iron content and manufacturing characteristics were consistent.

This supported the conclusion that the weapon used to kill Andrew Finch had been made by Raymond Ducet, likely in the same workspace where dozens of similar arrows had been crafted over the years.

The long bow found in the shed was also examined.

Testing determined that the bow had a draw weight of approximately 75 lbs and was capable of launching an arrow with sufficient force to penetrate bone at close to moderate range.

Investigators consulted with an expert in traditional archery who confirmed that a bow of this type in the hands of someone experienced could easily deliver a fatal shot to a human target at distances of up to 50 yards or more.

The expert also noted that the wear patterns on the boughs limbs and string grooves indicated it had been used extensively over many years.

On May 14th, 2 days after the search warrant was executed, the Nacatesh Parish Sheriff’s Office held a press conference to update the public on the investigation.

The sheriff confirmed that human remains identified as those of Andrew Finch had been found in Casace National Forest and that the death was being investigated as a homicide.

He announced that a suspect had been identified and that an arrest warrant had been issued, but he did not release the suspect’s name at that time, citing the ongoing manhunt.

He urged anyone with information about the whereabouts of the suspect or the disappearance of the other three men to come forward.

The press conference generated significant media attention.

News outlets across Louisiana and Texas picked up the story and it quickly spread to national media.

The case was featured on several crime news programs and online platforms.

Photographs of Colin Hayes, Derek Pullman, Justin Lamb, and Andrew Finch were shown alongside images of the forest where the search was taking place.

The families of the missing men gave interviews, pleading for anyone with knowledge of what had happened to contact authorities.

The publicity brought in a flood of tips, but most led nowhere.

People reported seeing men matching the descriptions of the victims in various locations, but none of the sightings could be confirmed.

Others called in with theories or suspicions about individuals in their communities, but investigation of these leads produced no credible connections to the case.

Then on May 16th, a tip came in that proved to be significant.

A woman who lived in a rural area approximately 15 mi north of Ducet’s property called the sheriff’s office to report that she had seen a man matching the description of Raymond Ducet near an abandoned hunting camp on the edge of the national forest.

She said the man had been walking along a dirt road early that morning, carrying a backpack and moving quickly as if trying to avoid being seen.

She had not approached him, but had watched from a distance as he entered the woods near the old camp.

The tip was deemed credible enough to warrant immediate action.

A tactical team was dispatched to the location the woman had described.

The abandoned hunting camp was a cluster of dilapidated structures that had once been used by a hunting club, but had been vacant for years.

The buildings were in poor condition with collapsed roofs and walls overtaken by vegetation.

It was the kind of place that would appeal to someone trying to stay hidden.

Officers approached the site cautiously, surrounding the area and moving in on foot to avoid detection.

As they closed in on the main structure, they spotted movement inside.

A man was crouched near a broken window, partially obscured by shadow.

When officers called out and ordered him to show himself, the figure did not comply.

Instead, he moved deeper into the building.

Fearing that the suspect might be armed, the tactical team deployed a flashbang device to disorient him and then stormed the structure.

Inside, they found Raymond Ducet huddled in a corner, unarmed and offering no resistance.

He was taken into custody without incident.

Ducid was transported to the Nacates Parish detention center and placed in an interrogation room.

He was read his rights and informed that he was being held on suspicion of murder.

Initially, he refused to speak, sitting in silence with his arms crossed and his eyes fixed on the table in front of him.

Detectives attempted to engage him in conversation, asking basic questions about his background and his activities, but he gave no response.

This continued for nearly an hour.

Then, one of the detectives placed a series of photographs on the table in front of him.

The photographs showed the items recovered from his property, the driver’s license, the wallet, the wristwatch, and the arrowheads.

Detach glanced at the images, but said nothing.

The detective then placed a photograph of Andrew Finch’s skull on the table with the rusted arrow head still embedded in the bone.

It was at this moment, according to the official transcript of the interrogation, that Ducid’s composure began to crack.

He stared at the photograph for a long time, his jaw tightening, and then he spoke.

His first words were, “They shouldn’t have been there.” The detective asked him to explain what he meant.

Ducid hesitated, then said that the men had been trespassing, that they had come onto land he considered his own, and that he had warned them to leave, but they had refused.

This statement was the beginning of what would become a partial confession.

Though Ducet never admitted to all of the details, and his account of events remained inconsistent and self-serving.

According to Ducet, he had encountered the four men on the afternoon of March 15th, 2014 while he was moving through the forest near one of his usual hunting spots.

He claimed that the men were loud and disrespectful, that they were trampling through areas he had marked as offlimits, and that when he confronted them, they had laughed at him and told him he had no authority to tell them where they could or could not go.

He said the confrontation escalated and that one of the men, he could not or would not say which one, had pushed him.

Dusk claimed that he felt threatened and that he had reacted in self-defense.

He admitted to using his bow and said that he had shot one of the men, later identified as Andrew Finch, because he believed his life was in danger.

He described the shot as instinctive, fired from a distance of roughly 20 yards, and said that the man had fallen immediately.

When asked what happened to the other three men, Ducet became evasive.

He said he did not remember clearly that everything had happened quickly and that he had panicked.

He insisted that he had not intended to kill anyone and that the situation had spiraled out of his control.

He refused to provide specifics about how the other men had died or what he had done with their bodies.

He would only say that they were gone and that no one would find them.

The detectives pressed him for details, but Ducet shut down, repeating that he wanted a lawyer and would say nothing more.

The interrogation was concluded and Ducet was formally charged with the murder of Andrew Finch.

Additional charges related to the deaths of Colin Hayes, Derek Pullman, and Justin Lamb were anticipated, but without bodies or further evidence, prosecutors knew that building those cases would be more difficult.

In the days following Raymond Ducet’s arrest, investigators returned to his property to conduct a more thorough and methodical search.

This time, they were armed with specific questions.

If Ducid had killed all four men as the evidence strongly suggested, then where were the remains of Colin Hayes, Derek Pullman, and Justin Lamb? The search teams expanded their efforts using cadaavver dogs to cover every square foot of the 40 acre property and the surrounding forest.

They brought in ground penetrating radar equipment to scan beneath the soil in areas that seemed disturbed or unnatural.

They drained a small pond located on the eastern edge of Ducit’s land to check for submerged remains.

They examined old fire pits, compost heaps, and refuse areas where organic material might have been disposed of.

Despite these exhaustive efforts, no additional human remains were discovered.

The investigation turned to other aspects of Ducid’s life and activities.

Detectives obtained records of his financial transactions, limited as they were, and found that he rarely used banks or credit cards, preferring to deal in cash.

They reviewed his phone records and discovered that he had virtually no contacts, no friends, no regular communication with anyone.

He was, by all accounts, a man who lived in near total isolation.

Investigators also interviewed people who had encountered Ducid over the years.

A gas station attendant recalled that he would occasionally come in to fill Jerry with fuel, always paying in cash and never engaging in conversation.

A clerk at a hardware store remembered him buying tarps, rope, and plastic sheeting on multiple occasions.

Purchases that now seemed ominous in hindsight.

A wildlife officer recounted an incident in which Ducet had been caught setting illegal snares and had responded with thinly veiled threats, saying that people who interfered in his business had a way of disappearing.

At the time, the comment had been dismissed as bluster, but now it took on a far more sinister meaning.

One of the most chilling discoveries came from a journal found inside Dit’s cabin during the initial search.

The journal was a worn notebook filled with handwritten entries dating back more than a decade.

Most of the entries were mundane notes about weather, hunting observations, and maintenance tasks around the property.

But scattered throughout were passages that revealed a deeply troubled mind.

In one entry from 2011, Ducet wrote about his resentment toward outsiders who treated the forest like a playground, trampling through areas he had claimed as his own and showing no respect for the land or for those who truly understood it.

In another entry from 2013, he described an encounter with a group of hikers who had camped near one of his hunting blinds.

He wrote that he had watched them from a distance and imagined what he would do if they refused to leave.

The entry ended with the phrase, “The forest protects its own.

” There was no explicit confession in the journal, but the tone and content painted a picture of a man who saw himself as a guardian of the wilderness and who viewed intruders as threats to be eliminated.

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The most damning entry was dated March 16th, 2014, the day after the four men had disappeared.

It was brief and cryptic, but its implications were unmistakable.

Ducid had written, “Four came where they didn’t belong.

The forest is quiet again.

It will keep the secret.” When this entry was presented to prosecutors, they recognized it as a near admission of guilt.

a statement that strongly suggested Ducid had been involved in the deaths of all four men, not just Andrew Finch.

The entry was entered into evidence and would become a key component of the case against him.

As the investigation continued, forensic experts re-examined the area where Andrew Finch’s skull had been found, hoping to uncover additional clues that might lead to the other bodies.

They expanded the search radius and paid particular attention to areas with natural features that could conceal remains, dense thickets, rocky outcrops, sinkholes, and submerged sections of the bayou.

Divers were sent into deeper water, and sonar equipment was used to scan the bottom of larger pools and channels.

One area of focus was a section of wetland located approximately half a mile from the original burial site.

The terrain there was treacherous, a mix of shallow water, thick mud, and tangled vegetation that made movement difficult even for experienced searchers.

It was the kind of place that few people would venture into, and it seemed like a plausible location for disposing of bodies.

Search teams waited through the muck, probing the mud with poles and using trained dogs to detect the scent of decomposition.

On May 22nd, one of the cadaver dogs alerted near a cluster of submerged logs at the edge of a stagnant pool.

The handlers marked the location and called in a dive team.

The divers worked carefully, feeling their way through the murky water and thick sediment.

After nearly an hour of searching, one of the divers surfaced and signaled that he had found something.

It was not a body, but it was significant.

Buried in the mud beneath the logs was a canvas backpack, heavily degraded and covered in algae, but still largely intact.

The backpack was carefully extracted and brought to the surface.

When it was opened, investigators found items that had been protected from complete decay by the waterlogged environment.

Inside were a waterproof pouch containing a soggy notebook, a pocketk knife, a small first aid kit, and a laminated emergency contact card.

The card bore the name Derek Pullman and listed his girlfriend’s phone number.

The discovery confirmed that Derek Pullman had been in this area and the condition of the backpack suggested it had been submerged for years, likely since the time of his disappearance.

The notebook inside the waterproof pouch was partially legible.

Forensic document examiners were able to recover some of the writing, which appeared to be notes related to the camping trip.

One entry dated March 15th, 2014 described the group’s arrival at the forest and their plan to explore some of the unofficial trails in the area.

Another entry mentioned that they had encountered a man in the woods who had been unfriendly and told them to stay away from certain areas.

The entry ended mid-sentence, suggesting that Dererick had stopped writing abruptly, possibly because of an interruption or because something had happened.

This notebook entry was significant because it corroborated Ducit’s claim that he had confronted the men, though it contradicted his assertion that the encounter had been entirely their fault.

According to Derek’s notes, the group had been going about their business when Ducet had approached them and made threats.

This painted a picture of Ducet as the aggressor, not the victim defending himself as he had tried to claim.

The search of the wetland area continued for several more days, but no human remains were found.

The lack of bodies remained the most frustrating aspect of the investigation.

Prosecutors knew that proving murder without a body was difficult, though not impossible, especially given the strength of the circumstantial evidence, and Ducid’s own statements.

They had the journal entry, the personal belongings of the victims, the partial confession, and the physical evidence linking Ducet to the death of Andrew Finch.

It was enough to proceed, but the absence of the other three bodies left a gap that the defense would certainly try to exploit.

Raymond Ducet’s legal team, a pair of public defenders assigned to his case, began building their defense strategy.

They did not deny that Ducet had encountered the four men in the forest.

Nor did they dispute that he had taken their belongings.

Instead, they focused on the argument that Ducet had acted in self-defense and that any deaths that occurred had been the result of a confrontation initiated by the victims.

They pointed to the lack of remains for three of the men and suggested that without bodies, there was no proof that those men were even dead, let alone that Dissid had killed them.

This argument was legally precarious, but it was the best option available to them.

The prosecution countered by presenting the totality of the evidence.

They argued that the presence of personal items belonging to all four men combined with Ducet’s own statements and the journal entry established that he had killed them and disposed of their bodies in a manner intended to prevent discovery.

They emphasized the brutality of Andrew Finch’s death, shot through the skull with an arrow from behind, and argued that this was not the action of a man defending himself, but the action of a predator eliminating a threat.

The case moved slowly through the legal system over the following months.

Ducet remained in custody, held without bail due to the severity of the charges and the risk that he might flee.

His demeanor in court was sullen and uncooperative.

He rarely spoke and showed no visible emotion, even when evidence was presented that detailed the suffering of the victims and the anguish of their families.

In September of 2018, additional evidence came to light that further strengthened the prosecution’s case.

A hiker exploring a remote section of the national forest several miles from Ducit’s property discovered a small clearing that appeared to have been used as a campsite.

Among the debris left behind were several items that forensic teams later identified as belonging to the missing men.

There was a tent stake with markings consistent with the brand used by Colin Hayes, a plastic water bottle with a label that matched those purchased by Justin Lamb at the gas station on the day of the trip.

and a pair of sunglasses that Andrew Finch’s brother confirmed were [clears throat] identical to a pair his brother had owned.

These items suggested that the men had at some point set up camp in this area, or at least passed through it before something went wrong.

The location of the clearing was significant because it was situated along a narrow trail that led directly toward the area where Ducet had been known to hunt.

It supported the theory that the men had inadvertently wandered into territory that Ducet considered his own and that this had triggered the violent confrontation.

By late 2018, the prosecution felt confident that they had assembled a compelling case.

They had physical evidence, witness statements, forensic analysis, and Ducid’s own words, all pointing to the same conclusion.

Raymond Ducet had murdered four men in the forest, buried one of them, and concealed the others so well that they might never be found.

The trial of Raymond Ducet began on January 14th, 2019 in the 10th Judicial District Court in Nacadesh Parish.

The courtroom was filled with family members of the victims, journalists, and local residents who had followed the case closely since the discovery of Andrew Finch’s skull 9 months earlier.

The proceedings were expected to last several weeks given the volume of evidence and the complexity of the charges.

Ducet was charged with four counts of seconddegree murder, one for each of the missing men.

The prosecution was led by assistant district attorney Laura Brennan, a seasoned prosecutor with a reputation for handling difficult cases involving circumstantial evidence.

The defense was represented by public defenders Gregory Hol and Nina Castillo.

Both experienced attorneys who understood the uphill battle they faced.

In her opening statement, Brennan laid out the timeline of events and the evidence that connected Raymond Ducet to the deaths of Colin Hayes, Derek Pullman, Justin Lamb, and Andrew Finch.

She described the men as friends who had simply wanted to enjoy a weekend in the forest.

Men who had done nothing wrong and had paid for that innocent decision with their lives.

She walked the jury through the discovery of Andrew Finch’s skull, the rusted arrow embedded in the bone, and the forensic analysis that linked the weapon to Ducet.

She presented the personal belongings found in Ducet’s shed, the journal entries that revealed his mindset, and the partial confession he had given during interrogation.

She argued that the evidence taken together painted an undeniable picture of a man who had killed four people and tried to erase them from existence.

The defense in their opening statement acknowledged that Raymond Ducid had encountered the four men and that a confrontation had occurred.

However, they framed the incident as a tragic misunderstanding that had escalated beyond anyone’s control.

They argued that Ducet, a man who had lived alone in the wilderness for decades, had felt genuinely threatened when the men refused to leave an area he considered dangerous.

They suggested that the death of Andrew Finch had been an accident, the result of a panicked reaction, and that there was no evidence to prove that the other three men were even dead.

They pointed out that no bodies had been found for Colin Hayes, Derek Pullman, or Justin Lamb.

And they argued that without bodies, the prosecution could not meet the burden of proof required for a murder conviction.

It was a risky strategy, but it was the only defense available given the circumstances.

The prosecution began presenting its case by calling witnesses who could establish the timeline and the character of the victims.

Family members testified about the men’s plans for the trip, their experience in the outdoors, and the fact that they had been excited and wellprepared.

Amanda Hayes, the wife of Colin Hayes, testified through tears about the last conversation she had with her husband, in which he had promised to bring her back photographs of the forest.

Derek Pullman’s girlfriend described the watch that had been found in Ducit’s possession, confirming that it had been a gift and that Dererick had never taken it off.

Justin Lamb’s mother spoke about the notebook her son always carried, the same notebook that had been found in the submerged backpack and how he had loved documenting his adventures.

These testimonies were emotional and effective, humanizing the victims and reminding the jury that these were real people with families who loved them.

Next, the prosecution called the forensic experts.

Dr.

Eric Pollson, the forensic pathologist who had examined Andrew Finch’s skull, testified about the nature of the injury.

He explained that the arrow had penetrated the skull from behind, entering at the base of the occipital bone and exiting through the frontal region above the eye socket.

He described the angle of entry and the force required to achieve such penetration.

And he stated unequivocally that the injury would have been immediately fatal.

He also testified that the wound was inconsistent with an accidental discharge or a defensive shot and that the positioning suggested the victim had been struck from behind, possibly while unaware of the danger.

The fingerprint expert testified about the partial print recovered from the arrowhead and explained the process used to match it to Raymond Ducet.

While he acknowledged that the print was not complete, he stated that the points of comparison were sufficient to establish a high degree of certainty that Ducid had handled the weapon.

The metallurgist who had analyzed the arrow head testified about the construction and materials, confirming that it matched the type of arrow heads found on Ducett’s property and that the design was consistent with handmade traditional hunting arrows.

The prosecution also called the detectives who had investigated the case.

Detective Benjamin Carter testified about the search efforts, the discovery of the victim’s personal belongings, and the interrogation of Raymond Ducet.

He read portions of the interrogation transcript aloud, including Ducet’s statement that the men shouldn’t have been there and his refusal to explain what had happened to the other three victims.

Carter also testified about the journal found in Ducet’s cabin, and the entry dated March 16th, 2014, was entered into evidence and displayed on a screen for the jury to read.

Four came where they didn’t belong.

The forest is quiet again.

It will keep the secret.

The impact of those words on the courtroom was palpable.

Several jurors leaned forward to read the entry more closely and family members of the victims visibly reacted, some covering their faces, others shaking their heads in disbelief.

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The defense attempted to undermine the prosecution’s case by questioning the reliability of the evidence.

During cross-examination, they pressed the forensic experts on the limitations of their findings.

They pointed out that the fingerprint was only partial and that there was a margin of error in the comparison.

They questioned whether the journal entry could be interpreted in other ways, suggesting that it might have been a metaphorical reflection rather than a literal admission of guilt.

They challenged the detectives on the thoroughess of the search efforts, asking why, if Ducid had killed all four men.

Only one body had been found.

They suggested that the other three men might have fled the area and met some other fate or that they might still be alive somewhere, though they offered no evidence to support this theory.

The defense called only a few witnesses, including a psychologist, who testified that Ducet exhibited signs of social anxiety and paranoia, conditions that might have caused him to overreact in a confrontational situation.

They also called a neighbor who described Ducet as a quiet man who kept to himself and had never been violent in their interactions.

These testimonies did little to counteract the weight of the prosecution’s evidence, but they were presented in an attempt to create reasonable doubt.

The most anticipated moment of the trial came when the prosecution called Raymond Ducet’s former acquaintance, a man named Luther Biggs, who had known Ducet in the late 1990s when they both worked on a logging crew.

Biggs testified that Ducid had always been strange and that he had once bragged about knowing how to make a person disappear in the swamps without leaving a trace.

Biggs said that at the time he had dismissed the comment as drunken talk, but after hearing about the case, he had contacted authorities because he believed it was relevant.

The defense objected to the testimony, arguing that it was hearsay and prejuditial, but the judge allowed it under the exception for statements against interest.

The prosecution rested its case after 2 weeks of testimony.

The defense presented its case over the course of 3 days, but the evidence they offered was minimal and largely ineffective.

In closing arguments, Laura Brennan summarized the evidence and urged the jury to consider the totality of what had been presented.

She reminded them of the skull with the arrow through it, the personal belongings of all four men found in Ducet’s possession, the journal entry that amounted to a confession, and Ducet’s own refusal to explain what had happened to the other victims.

She argued that the only reasonable conclusion was that Raymond Ducet had murdered all four men in cold blood and had done everything in his power to hide the evidence.

She asked the jury to deliver justice for Colin Hayes, Derek Pullman, Justin Lamb, and Andrew Finch, men who had gone into the forest seeking adventure and had instead met a brutal end.

The defense, in their closing, made a final appeal for reasonable doubt.

They argued that the prosecution had not proven beyond a reasonable doubt that all four men were dead and that without bodies, the charges related to three of the victims were based on speculation.

They acknowledged that Andrew Finch’s death was a tragedy, but they maintained that it had been the result of a confrontation that had spiraled out of control, not a premeditated act of murder.

They asked the jury to consider the possibility that Ducet was guilty of manslaughter, not murder, and that the other men’s fates remained unknown.

The jury deliberated for 3 days.

On the afternoon of February 8th, 2019, they returned with a verdict.

The courtroom was silent as the jury foreman stood and read the decision.

On the charge of seconddegree murder in the death of Andrew Finch, the jury found Raymond Dusk guilty.

On the charge of seconddegree murder in the death of Colin Hayes, guilty on the charge of seconddegree murder in the death of Derek Pullman.

Guilty.

On the charge of seconddegree murder in the death of Justin Lamb.

Guilty.

The families of the victims wept openly as the verdicts were read.

Raymond Dusset showed no reaction, staring straight ahead with the same blank expression he had worn throughout the trial.

Sentencing was scheduled for March 15th, 2019, exactly 5 years after the men had disappeared.

At the sentencing hearing, the judge heard impact statements from the families.

Amanda Haye spoke about the life she and Colin had planned together and how that future had been stolen.

Derek Pullman’s girlfriend described the years of uncertainty and grief, never knowing what had happened until the discovery of his belongings.

Justin Lamb’s mother spoke about her son’s kindness and creativity and how the world had lost something irreplaceable when he was taken.

Andrew Finch’s brother addressed Ducet directly, asking him why he had done it and begging him to reveal where the other bodies were so that the families could have closure.

Ducet remained silent.

The judge sentenced Raymond Ducet to four consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole.

In his remarks, the judge stated that the crimes were among the most callous and calculated he had encountered in his years on the bench, and that Ducid had shown no remorse, no humanity, and no willingness to help the families find peace.

He noted that while only one body had been recovered, the evidence overwhelmingly supported the conclusion that all four men had been murdered and that Ducet deserved to spend the rest of his life in prison.

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Raymond Dusset was transferred to the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola, where he remains to this day.

He has never spoken publicly about the case and has refused all requests for interviews.

The families of Colin Hayes, Derek Pullman, and Justin Lamb continue to search for answers, hoping that one day Ducet will reveal where their loved ones are buried.

Volunteers and investigators have conducted periodic searches of the forest over the years, but no additional remains have been found.

In 2021, a small memorial was erected near the entrance to the Saline Bayou area of Kasachi National Forest.

The memorial bears the names of all four men and includes a plaque that reads in memory of Colin Hayes, Derek Pullman, Justin Lamb, and Andrew Finch.

Gone but never forgotten.

May the forest that took them one day return them to those who love them.

The case remains a somber reminder of how quickly a peaceful adventure can turn into a nightmare, and how the wilderness, for all its beauty, can also conceal the darkest of human actions.

The four friends who set out on a spring morning in 2014 never came home.

But their story and the pursuit of justice on their behalf ensures that they will always be remembered.