Macin Darrin Smith a 17-year-old male resident of Saint George, Utah was reported missing by his parents on September 1, 2015. The case garnered an unusual amount of media attention leading to a community outpouring of support for the distraught parents. Searches in Las Vegas, Nevada and the surrounding hills of St, George, Utah were soon underway. Red Rock Search and Rescue and other organizations assembled hundreds of local volunteers both on foot and in all-terrain vehicles to scour the nearby wilderness. Fourteen large scale exhaustive searches were conducted in all. Drones were later used to reexamine areas previously covered in hopes of finding something that was missed, but no sign of Macin was ever detected. Despite the fact that most missing persons are found within 2 ½ miles of their home and 97% of missing person cases are solved the Macin Smith case went cold. It’s as if Macin just disappeared. But people don’t just disappear…
Parents Darrin Smith and Tracey Smith remained hopeful. By all outward appearances the Smith’s appeared to be the typical Family. They had several grown kids, of whom were off living productive lives leaving Macin as the youngest sibling still living at home with Mom and Dad. The Smith’s had moved to St. George from Canada at the end of the previous school year. Darrin Smith, Macin’s Dad had been away for work for the Summer and most of the Spring. His return home three days earlier seemed to trigger the events leading to Macin’s disappearance. Did he run away? It didn’t seem likely, as Macin left his wallet with his identification, passport, and cash behind. Up until his father’s return, Macin and his mother seemed to be enjoying their new home life. They spent the summer exploring the town and local parks. They went on hikes, and spent evenings relaxing at home. Macin has been described as a quiet, somewhat introverted teenager. He was a good student, liked rock music, anime cartoons, and video games. Being new to the area, he hadn’t yet made any close friends.
The next day, September 2nd Tracey Smith went to Desert Hills High School to pay for Macin’s senior class cap, gown, and tassel. She hoped perhaps that Macin would have shown up for school that day, but that wasn’t the case. The next few days panic set-in. Family arrived to join in the search. A report of a teenage hitchhiker looking like Macin with a sign reading “Las Vegas” led Darrin Smith to head to Las Vegas in hopes of finding Macin. Surveillance cameras from a local gas station later revealed the person thought to be Macin was not him.
Six days after first finding Macin’s wallet hidden in a dresser in Macin’s room, Tracey Smith claims she did a subsequent search and found a 3-page handwritten note inside the wallet. She apparently hadn’t noticed the note the first time. The contents of the note have never been revealed, but Tracey Smith has disclosed that the note contained the words, “I’m done.” She concluded this meant Macin intended to hurt himself. Another family member has come forward to say that in the note Macin berated both parents and mentioned an argument which both Tracey and Darrin have both denied ever happened.
It’s been 5-years since Macin went missing. Some have speculated that Macin killed himself and his body is out there somewhere waiting to be found. Countless sightings of Macin have turned out to be cases of mistaken identity. Supporters close to the Smith family moderate a Facebook group called MacinsArmy which has over 52,000 followers. Over the years it has morphed into a generic missing person’s page for anyone with a loved one who has gone missing. There’s little if any mention of Macin. It’s basically a page to thank people who in the past have searched for Macin or wish to give their condolences. Any inferences that the family has anything to do with Macin’s disappearance is instantly removed or blocked.
A “dedication bench” for Macin was placed at a local park with a anime type caricature of Macin. It included his birthdate and the date he went missing. In a strange way it resembles a headstone. The words, “Never Give Up. Never Surrender” appear on the bench. There’s no mention Macin is still missing…