The Body of Chance Englebert Has Been Found — The 25-Year-Old Father Vanished in 2019

In a heartbreaking post to the Help Find Chance Englebert Facebook group, a member of his family delivered news that felt inevitable. The 25-year-old's body had been found, which was confirmed by DNA testing. Englebert had vanished six years prior. "All I can say is that this is not any type of closure to us," wrote his family, adding that there will just always be more questions.

In the previous month, a separate post to the group announced that law enforcement officials in Scottsbluff County might have had a break in the case. It's unclear how often this happened, but the original poster understood how passionate people can get when it comes to stories like Englebert's. They asked for respect and space to let investigators do what needed to be done. It didn't take long to get an answer. What happened to the young father? Here's what we know.

According to The Independent, a hiker stumbled upon Englebert's remains while hiking around Scotts Bluff National Monument. Based on items found near the body, it was believed to be Englebert before DNA testing was conducted. This is a fairly remote area, leaving investigators to theorize that Englebert was possibly taking a shortcut.

As with any mysterious case, a lot of theories have been floated surrounding Englebert's disappearance. According to Cowboy State Daily, former South Dakota state senator Lyndi Meyer hosts a true crime podcast where she has followed this tragedy. Her pursuit of the truth led to a protective order from Englebert's wife after Meyer showed up at her home. The podcast host believes the people of Gering, Neb., the city where Englebert was last seen, know more than they have told police.

In all likelihood, we may never know exactly what happened to Englebert. We can only revisit the details of his last known moments to try and find answers. On Fourth of July weekend in 2019, Englebert, his wife Baylee, and their infant son traveled to Gering from Moorcroft, Wyo., to spend the weekend with Baylee's family.

While golfing with his father-in-law and other members of Baylee's family, Englebert reportedly got into an argument over a new job he had just gotten. The 25-year-old had recently been laid off from a coal mine in Gillette. Depending on who you ask, everyone was either drinking a lot or not much. Either way, Englebert called his wife to come and pick him up, telling her he wanted to return home to Wyoming.

Upon returning to Baylee's grandmother's house, the couple began fighting about leaving. Englebert reached out to a friend about getting a ride home, but they were too far away, so he started walking to Torrington, about 35 miles away. Shortly before he vanished, Englebert had a tense exchange with an unknown man at a Scottsbluff convenience store. He told the clerk he was going back to his in-laws.

Englebert's last communication was a strange text sent at 9:08 a.m. on July 6. It was a confusing mix of numbers and emojis sent to his aunt. This was alarming to Englebert's mother, who later said he never used emojis. Following the discovery of her son's body, Dawn Englebert confirmed his cause of death was ruled an accident, per Cowboy State Daily.