New Lead in 49-Year Cold Case: The Search for John Atkins

Nearly fifty years ago, John Atkins vanished without a trace. A devoted father and hard-working salesman, John disappeared on a foggy October night in 1975, somewhere between Freeport and Courtland, California. He was last seen in his GMC Sprint after reportedly closing a sales deal just north of the Freeport Bridge. This week, Adventures with Purpose returns to the Sacramento River with a renewed focus and an old rumor that just might crack the case wide open. Joining us is Mike Sullivan from Sunshine State Sonar, who has personally solved 16 cases in Florida. His expertise and sonar skills bring new energy to this decades-old mystery. 📌 Sunshine State Sonar on YouTube... ➤ https://www.youtube.com/@Sunshinestatesonar 📌 Sunshine State Sonar on Facebook... ➤ https://www.facebook.com/Sunshinestatesonar The team came back to follow up on a key tip: a local woman who lived near the river claims she heard a splash in the water the night John disappeared. As the story goes, searchers scoured the riverbanks for days afterward with no results. Today, we’ve returned to that exact spot in hopes of finding answers for John's family. As the divers descend, the river begins to reveal more of its buried secrets. Several submerged vehicles are located, including a deeply buried truck and a Chrysler LeBaron from the 1980s. Another blue four-door pickup is discovered completely embedded in silt, a chilling reminder of how the river can preserve tragedy for decades. Though one promising sonar hit turned out to be a false alarm—just trees, rocks, and a rusted trap near what looked like a car frame—the crew pushed onward. The challenges of poor visibility, powerful currents, and shifting riverbeds didn’t deter them. Instead, they marked every potential target for further investigation. Among today’s notable finds: - A red Ford Mustang buried up to the roof in sand. - A blue, shiny sedan—possibly a newer model, unlinked to current missing person reports. - A silver Chrysler LeBaron, upside down and heavily damaged. - A full-size, four-door pickup truck—timeframe accurate but not yet confirmed. - A double-stack of two old vehicles, one possibly a 1970s-era car—raising hopes it could be John's GMC Sprint. As the day progressed, divers inspected each vehicle, ruling some out, and marking others for further analysis. One submerged Toyota initially thought to be connected to another case turned out to be a four-door Corolla, not the two-door Celica driven by Jose Cortez, another missing person from the region. Still, each car pulled from the depths is another step closer to uncovering the truth. John isn’t the only soul being searched for in these murky waters. We continue looking for: - Julie Margaret Vessigault, missing since January 2024. - Norma Houghland and her sons, Thomas and Richard, missing since 1978 in a Pontiac LeMans. - Jose Guadalupe Cortez, last seen in 1992. - Uriel Cantu, missing since 2006. All are believed to have disappeared somewhere near or into this river. Each case carries years of heartbreak and questions. Some of our most significant breakthroughs—like discovering Karmen Neilson’s car in the Sacramento River—have come when we least expected them. That’s why we scan and dive every suspicious hit. Because even a false lead brings us one step closer to a real answer. Today’s search ends with seven promising vehicle targets still to investigate and one simple truth: we are closer now than we’ve ever been. 🎬.. Watch Day 4: SOLVED Karmen Neilson Found in River After 6 Years of Searching! https://youtu.be/SgKh8AYVkPw ===== ➦ Share this video to SPREAD AWARENESS of the service AWP provides for FREE! ❤️.. JOIN THE AWP MOVEMENT ..❤️ (Get Videos Early)... ➤ http://bit.ly/AWP-Team-Member 🎯 Subscribe to AWP on YouTube (It's Free)...➤ http://bit.ly/SubAWP 👕 AWP Merchandise..➤ https://adventureswithpurpose.com 📌 Follow Us on Facebook... ➤ https://bit.ly/FollowAWP HOW IS AWP FUNDED?... ➤ https://youtu.be/wz1dCguO2y0 💔 WINDOW BREAKERS SAVE LIVES! 😢 A MUST-HAVE Safety Tool for ALL Drivers. https://adventureswithpurpose.com/products/window-breakers Tell us about a case? Email our support team: [email protected] 🎬.. Watch Other Cases We've Solved ==================== SOLVED: Missing 23-years Underwater (Samantha Hopper, 22-month-old Daughter Courtney, Unborn Baby) https://youtu.be/isqd8OOcJpQ SOLVED: 💔 Missing 24-year-old Jacob VanZant Found https://youtu.be/xrHE70g7h4c SOLVED: How We FOUND Kiely Rodni: MURDER or ACCIDENT? https://youtu.be/bPwnDyW26gk #Missing #MissingPerson #ColdCase