22 year old Christopher Cole Thomas was last seen in Benson, North Carolina on November 25, 2016. He disappeared while on a trip with coworkers.
Disappearance
On November 25, 2016, Christopher Cole Thomas, aka Cole, was last seen in Benson, North Carolina. He was traveling with two coworkers from North Carolina back to Minnesota, when they came into Benson, North Carolina for unknown reasons.
Around 3:00 am, the coworkers say Cole abruptly pulled over at the intersection of Elm Street and Morgan Street in Benson. Cole reportedly ran out and one of the coworkers went after him.
The coworker returned about 90 minutes later, but Cole never did. He hasn’t been seen since.
Investigation
According to the coworkers, they had stopped in Benson to “do a big drug deal.” They claim Cole became nervous and began driving erratically afterwards.
According to Cole’s family, they had been in touch with him via text shortly before he disappeared and everything seemed normal.
Cole’s family is offering a $10,000 reward for information that leads to his location, and the State of North Carolina is offering a $50,000 reward for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of any person(s) responsible for his disappearance.
In July 2017, four men were charged with concealment of a death in Cole’s case, however those charges were dropped in September 2019.
Two of the men, Jeremy Brian Carpenter and Julian Valles Jr., were the two coworkers Cole was with when he disappeared. The other two men were allegedly involved in the drug deal and death of Cole.
The prosecution states they dropped the case in order to avoid compromising a possible further prosecution for homicide.
“The investigation into the death of Cole Thomas is ongoing,” Johnston County District Attorney Susan Doyle said. “The SBI continues to follow up on all new information. After a thorough review of the case as it stands today, I made the decision to dismiss the current charges in order to avoid compromising any potential future homicide prosecutions.”
Appearance
White male with blonde hair and blue eyes. Cole stands 6’1 tall and weighs 230 pounds. He had a crew cut at the time of his disappearance, and possibly a short beard about his chin.
Cole has swirls and a tribal design tattooed on his left chest and upper left arm and shoulder.
Clothing & Accessories:
Cole was last seen wearing a blue t-shirt, black longsleeve undershirt, black pants, a blue and white ballcap, and dark colored Hurley shoes.
Investigating Agency
If you have any information regarding the disappearance of Christopher Cole Thomas please contact the Benson Police Department at (919) 894-2091, or the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (919) 779-8188.
