i ill think about all that bad stuff sherra said about him. but when they retired his jersey, you saw memphis came out. this is a man who had helped his city. this is a man that took care of more families than you'd ever imagine. he kept them in homes, houses. he paid bills. he kept their lights on. deborah marion: this boy was just loving. he just loved by sight. he just saw personality. if you was good to him, he was great to you. that's for sure. [theme music] [music playing] hello, i'm andrea canning, for these last two years.re g initially, it was panic, and then it turned into torment.

i was concerned that she was hurt somewhere. i felt so helpless. andrea canning (voiceover): kelli bordeaux was always there for others. olivia cox: she liked to help people that needed help. andrea canning (voiceover): there for her friends, there for her country. this was a good fit for her, the army? she wanted to be an officer. andrea canning (voiceover): her personal life was a little more complicated. she was estranged from her husband-- andrea canning: were they talking divorce? kelli was. mike wouldn't. andrea canning (voiceover): --had a new boyfriend. she was pretty fun. she's easy to talk to. andrea canning (voiceover): and lately, she seemed to have an admirer. did he ask kelli for her phone number? yeah. andrea canning (voiceover): when she suddenly vanished, hundreds joined the search, including this perfect stranger. i said i'd like to see if i could solve this. andrea canning (voiceover): he was suspicious about one of the men in kelli's life. it's like, dude, i can tell you're lying. andrea canning (voiceover): but getting the truth wouldn't be easy. i had to get into his mind and see what he was about.

what you were involved in was psychological warfare. mm-hmm. he knows where she's at. andrea canning (voiceover): after a young soldier's mysterious disappearance, one man's personal battle to find her. do you think he's finally going to reveal to you? oh, i know he is. hello, and welcome to "dateline." kelli bordeaux was just starting what she hoped would be a long career in the military, but fate had other plans. one night, the young army medic was hanging out at a local bar when suddenly she vanished. fearing the worst, friends and family launched a frantic search. but it would take a stranger hell bent on justice to track down the ugly truth behind kelli's disappearance. here is "deep in the woods."

andrea canning (voiceover): it's closed now, just a decrepit old shack with only the weeds for company. the good times are long gone, back when it was a watering hole for some of the soldiers based at nearby fort bragg. famous for billiards, beer, and karaoke, it was once a popular little pub called froggy bottoms. and it was where private first class kelli bordeaux planned to unwind one friday night back in april 2012, friday the 13th. kelli was just 23, a mere 5 foot 1 and barely 100 pounds, but she could hold her own with anybody. girl power, indeed! andrea canning (voiceover): to her older siblings, matt and olivia, kelli was always the perfect combination of tough and sweet. bouncy, bubbly, happy, and just trying to have a good time. i think she was always working to get better.

she had a driven personality. andrea canning (voiceover): kelli also had a big heart. she was warm and generous, always putting others first. she liked to help people that she saw needed help. she wanted them to be better because she could help them to be better. [chanting] andrea canning (voiceover): kelli grew up in florida and enlisted in the army when she was 22. you just wait till i see you. i'm not playing with you at all. andrea canning (voiceover): after basic training, the army sent her to fayetteville, north carolina. at fort bragg, kelli trained as an army medic, one of the most demanding jobs in the military. i think it gave her an opportunity to do something better with her life. and she wanted to help people. andrea canning: and what was it about being an army medic? that's an intense job. it was something that would push her to her limits. i want to make a career out of it. i want to do it 20 years. she's like, i really want this to be something.

so she would have possibly made a life out of the military. oh, yeah. yeah, that was the plan. andrea canning (voiceover): kelli's professional life was on track, but her personal life was complicated. kelli had a husband named mike bordeaux. they got married in 2010 before she joined the service, but later separated. after some time apart, the couple decided to give it another shot. so when the army sent kelli to north carolina, she asked mike to come with her. why did kelli want to save the marriage? i think she didn't want to see it as a failure. she said i'm going to give it three months where i devote. i am going to make this work. andrea canning (voiceover): but kelli couldn't make it work. despite her efforts, the marriage was on the rocks. she bought him a one-way plane ticket to florida, and he left. and did she actually use the word "divorce"? i remember the text message was very clear. like, listen, mike. i've done everything i can for the last three months

to try to make this work. i can't do this anymore. like, this is it. andrea canning (voiceover): during her initial separation from mike, kelli started seeing someone else, a guy from her hometown of st. cloud, florida named justin thompson. she was just fun. she was easy to talk to. she was always laughing and loving. it was-- she never meant anything wrong to anybody. kelli had a knack for making people happy? mm-hmm. she was inviting to everyone. if you were there, you were part of the party. andrea canning (voiceover): when kelli tried to save her troubled marriage, justin says he gave her space. but when mike ultimately moved out, kelli asked justin to move in. andrea canning: were you in love with kelli? yeah, we were in love. i don't want to be like, we were going to get married and have kids because i don't know what was going to happen. but i know that was our intentions, is to further our relationship. was home wherever kelli was? yeah. andrea canning (voiceover): in early april of 2012, justin visited fayetteville to get acquainted with his future home. the couple also hit froggy bottoms.

then justin returned to florida. he'd be back in two weeks, this time, for good. meanwhile, that friday the 13th, kelli decided to go to the bar alone. she texted her sister, olivia, before she left that night and sent this selfie. did she say if she was going with anybody? no, she's like, i'm going to go sing karaoke and just not think about work, not think about mike-- just kind of trying to get away from all that and relax. andrea canning (voiceover): kelli also texted justin about her plans. justin says he wasn't happy that kelli had gone out alone in a new town she didn't know. i didn't feel like her life was in danger. i just didn't feel like that was a good environment. what? what wasn't a good environment? the fayetteville area. her by herself, we don't know anybody there. so if something was to happen, nobody's going to call you to say, hey, kelli hasn't came home in a while. nobody knows anything. andrea canning (voiceover): but throughout the evening, kelli and justin kept in touch, texting frequently. everything seemed fine, he said.

olivia, meanwhile, went to bed early. the next morning, did you try to call her or text her? probably at some point, i probably texted her and just said, hey, you know, how was last night or whatever? but it wasn't uncommon for us to not talk for a day or two. and i just remember, like, just let her chill this weekend. andrea canning (voiceover): but justin said he did wake up to a text from kelli sent around 1:30 am. he says there was something strange about it. the verbiage, the way she talks, it doesn't make sense. i made it home. i'm safe. i'll call you tomorrow. why would you not be safe? why would you text me, i made it home. i'm safe. call me. i'll call you tomorrow. that makes no sense. did you try calling her then? yeah. andrea canning: and-- it was dead. so what are you thinking? it was bad. i knew it was bad. what had happened to kelli bordeaux? her family begins to panic. andrea canning (voiceover): coming up. what were some of the scenarios that were running through your mind? that somebody was holding her somewhere. andrea canning (voiceover): and then

police turn their attention to kelli's estranged husband. andrea canning: were they talking divorce? kelli was. mike wasn't. andrea canning (voiceover): when "dateline" continues. i have active psoriatic arthritis. but with skyrizi to treat my skin and joints, count me in. along with clearer skin, skyrizi helps me move with less joint pain, stiffness, swelling, and fatigue. and is just 4 doses a year, after 2 starter doses. serious allergic reactions and an increased risk of infections or a lower ability to fight them may occur. tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms, had a vaccine, or plan to. there's nothing like clearer skin and better movement and that means everything! ask your doctor about skyrizi today. learn how abbvie could help you save.

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the most prescribed biologic in asthma. and now approved as an add-on treatment for adults with inadequately controlled copd with a specific marker of inflammation. with inadequately controlled copd saturday, the morning after, kelli bordeaux had been out of touch for hours. her boyfriend, justin thompson, knew something was wrong. what was supposed to be a day off was now turning into a day of dread.

not a call, text, or tweet from her, he says. i remember talking to my mom. i was like, i don't want to start a storm, but i'm really worried about it because i knew something bad happened. why did you jump to that conclusion so fast? if you talk to somebody every day and then you can't get a hold of them, it's not good. andrea canning (voiceover): saturday came and went. still, nothing from kelli. so on sunday, justin, now frantic, phoned the fayetteville police department, urging them to start searching. nobody would help me. i called them several times. andrea canning (voiceover): police policy required a family member to call in and provide more personal details on kelli before they could start searching. so the next day, justin decided to call the army base instead. justin thompson: i asked them if they showed up, and i said it's important. if she didn't show up, you need to go to her house. and then they got back on the phone and said she didn't show up. andrea canning (voiceover): army investigators and fayetteville police went to kelli's apartment. andrea canning: they got inside. - mm-hmm. - no kelli. no kelli.

is that when everybody starts taking this really seriously? yeah, everybody started to panic, yeah. andrea canning (voiceover): word spread like wildfire as fort bragg called kelli's estranged husband, mike, who then phoned her sister, olivia. reliable kelli had missed roll call and wasn't at home. i was like, what the hell? so then i started facebook messengering her, texting her, calling her like crazy. i started trying to find anybody that i knew that was in the army with her. i'm like, how have you seen her? did you go out with her on friday? i was just trying everything. andrea canning (voiceover): everything led to nothing. no leads, no clues, no kelli. what were some of the scenarios that were running through your mind? just that somebody was holding her somewhere, you know. kidnapping, kind of. yeah, i thought that-- i was more concerned that she was hurt somewhere and she wasn't able to get to us, so we have to get to her. andrea canning (voiceover): olivia, matt, and mike immediately made plans to all meet in fayetteville. [sirens] by now, the fayetteville pd was all over the case.

one of the investigators assigned was veteran homicide detective mike ballard. we knew this could be an endangered person. why the homicide unit when she's barely been missing? kelli bordeaux was not a problem soldier. always contacted her family or friends. and then she just disappears off the face of the earth. breaking news in the case of kelli bordeaux, the fort bragg soldier missing since saturday. andrea canning (voiceover): the disappearance of the beautiful young army medic was now big news and covered extensively by local media, like nbc station wral tv. right now, it's still a missing person case. there is a lot that is not known at this time. andrea canning (voiceover): olivia and mike arrived in fayetteville, where they took a grim meeting at police headquarters. andrea canning: what did you tell them? that we were hoping for the best, but preparing for the worst, and they should do the same thing, too. i remember that at one point, the detectives were trying to take us back to talk to us more, and we were walking into a room and it said "homicide" on the door.

and i was not going in there. and they were like, no, no, no, this is just the best room. and i was like, that's not happening. i was like, i'm not letting that thought in. i was like, i have to stay positive. this is an out of character thing to happen to my sister. it's not something that is-- it's not something she would do. andrea canning (voiceover): olivia quickly became a mainstay on every media outlet in the area. i just want my sister back. you know? i just want to talk to her. andrea canning (voiceover): mike bordeaux also went on camera to plead for his wife's return. please let her come home. just let her come home. andrea canning (voiceover): the public, police, and military response was intense. it seemed like the whole town turned out to look for kelli. most of us are military, prior military, or spouses. so we are very driven to find one of our own. andrea canning (voiceover): search teams numbering in the hundreds combed the fields and thick forests surrounding fayetteville.

i searched basically every day i was there, sunup to sundown for the most part. and then it's just searching, searching, searching. reporter: this volunteer group started at kelli's apartment, but just like police, their search turned up nothing. andrea canning (voiceover): detectives were also combing through kelli's background, her habits, and most importantly, her circle of family and friends. everybody's a suspect till we eliminate you you started with mike bordeaux. mike bordeaux. kelli's estranged husband. right, and he told me during the interview that they were having some problems. and that's what threw me off. when he would get on tv, there was no issues. me and her loved each other very much. and i just appreciate everyone out here, helping looking for her. he wasn't being consistent. were they talking divorce? kelli was. mike wasn't. did you see that as a possible motive? yeah, we had to eliminate mike bordeaux. andrea canning (voiceover): mike insisted he was in florida when kelli went missing in fayetteville. even so, police still considered

him the primary person of interest. reporter: has her husband been questioned by detectives? we've had conversation with mr. bordeaux. andrea canning (voiceover): police also needed to have a conversation with kelli's boyfriend, justin thompson. little did they know that justin had a huge new lead waiting for them about the night kelli disappeared. coming up, a new possible suspect. he is the last person that's seen with kelli. that was very concerning to us. andrea canning (voiceover): why something in his past would trigger even more alarm bells. it certainly was a red flag. andrea canning (voiceover): when "dateline" continues. i still love to surf, snowboard, and, of course, skate. so, i take qunol magnesium to support my muscle and bone health. qunol's extra strength, high absorption magnesium helps me get the full benefits of magnesium. qunol, the brand i trust.

it's our son, he is always up in our business. it's the verizon 5g home internet i got us. oh... he used to be a competitive gamer but with the higher lag, he can't keep up with his squad. so now we're his “squad”. what are kevin's plans for the fall? he's going to college. out of state, yeah. -yeah in the fall. change of plans, i've decided to stay local. oh excellent! oh that's great! why would i ever leave this? -aw!

we will do anything to get him gaming again. you and kevin need to fix this internet situation. heard my name! i swear to god, kevin! -we told you to wait in the car. everyone in my old squad has xfinity. less lag, better gaming! i'm gonna need to charge you for three people.

reporter 1: police have just told us they have no new leads. reporter 2: they found nothing, no leads. reporter 3: kelli bordeaux. reporter 4: missing fort bragg soldier kelli bordeaux. reporter 5: what happened to kelli bordeaux? andrea canning (voiceover): it was now national news. suddenly quiet little fayetteville was ground zero for a massive search for a missing army medic. detectives say information in this case keeps pointing them to look in this area near where she was last seen. andrea canning (voiceover): kelli bordeaux had been missing some 72 hours. the chances of finding her were growing slimmer by the day. investigators have combed through just about every area here in fayetteville, as well as in cumberland county. andrea canning (voiceover): 600 miles away in florida,

kelli's boyfriend, justin thompson, was talking to detectives, telling them he was home the weekend kelli disappeared. he was right where he said. we checked his phone. everything checked out with justin. andrea canning (voiceover): justin told detectives something else, another name to check out. when he and kelli visited froggy bottoms the week before she disappeared, they met a chatty guy who worked there named nick holbert. he just started talking to us at that point. you get vibes from people sometimes. i could see he's weird. andrea canning (voiceover): but, he says, kelli, being kelli, asked holbert if he wanted to join them for a game of pool. holbert hung out with them until justin and kelli decided to head home for the night. did he ask kelli for her phone number? yeah. and? she gave it to him because he worked there. so it's always good to have somebody that works at the bar as a friend. andrea canning (voiceover): that friday the 13th, when kelli decided to go back to the bar by herself, justin told detectives she wasn't really alone.

he said she arranged to get a ride from nick holbert. i just said this, like just watch out. be careful around him. this guy really stuck in your mind. yeah, he's weird. i don't know what she was doing. did you say maybe you shouldn't-- i said it. --go with him? i said it, but i wasn't adamant about it. i'm not going to tell her no 1,000 times on text message. andrea canning (voiceover): kelli made it safely to the bar, where she texted justin throughout the night. but then there was that last rather odd text he received. justin was sure holbert had something to do with kelli's disappearance and sent the text to cover his tracks. she went out with this kid, and she was supposed to come home and she didn't come home with that kid. andrea canning (voiceover): so detectives went to froggy bottoms, where they found nick holbert. they discovered he was down on his luck, living in the woods behind the bar. they searched his campsite and his car. not one clue.

holbert also agreed to an interview at the police station, where he told detectives, yes, he picked up kelli on friday the 13th, and later dropped her off at the entrance to her apartment complex. andrea canning (voiceover): holbert was fully cooperative, didn't duck one question. andrea canning (voiceover): so they let him go. if nick holbert was a suspect, he certainly wasn't acting like one. he joined search teams looking for kelli and even spoke on local tv expressing his concern. she seemed like a really nice and cool person. and i mean, i hate that she's missing. andrea canning (voiceover): but fayetteville police weren't buying holbert's story. and now he, too, was a person of interest, along with kelli's husband, mike bordeaux.

remember, mike said he was home in florida when she went missing, which detectives needed to confirm. family put him there friday night. friends put him there. his alibi checked out. andrea canning (voiceover): so now detectives and district attorney billy west zeroed in on the last person seen with kelli. everything kept coming back to nicholas holbert is the prime suspect. andrea canning (voiceover): so investigators dug into holbert's background and discovered something rather disturbing. he was a registered sex offender and served time in a penitentiary for that. it certainly was a red flag, the fact that he had a prior sex offense, and he is the last person that's seen with kelli. that was very, very concerning to us. andrea canning: the da didn't have any evidence to arrest holbert for kelli's disappearance. but he did discover holbert was violating the terms of his parole. he was a prior sex offender. and he was not registered properly.

and he was placed in jail. reporter: sex offender nicholas-- andrea canning (voiceover): right where detectives wanted him. now they could watch holbert, see if he blabbed to a cellmate about what happened to kelli. they also questioned him twice, even took him back to froggy bottoms to jog his memory. but holbert stuck to his same, though sometimes inconsistent, story. you caught him in lies, but you couldn't crack him. exactly. andrea canning (voiceover): by now, olivia and matt had left fayetteville and gone home. i remember feeling defeated. we came up here thinking that something was going to happen, and it didn't. i don't know. i felt like i didn't sleep for a couple of weeks. it was just 24/7, thinking about what happened, what happened, what happened. andrea canning (voiceover): detectives and the da seemed so close to an answer. they even had their prime suspect in custody. but weeks passed, months. holbert stopped talking. andrea canning: you couldn't arrest him. we needed her body. we needed to find kelli bordeaux. andrea canning (voiceover): little

did police know it would take some two years to finally unravel the mystery. but they were about to get help, help they never imagined. deep in the forest, a secret investigation was underway, a man on a mission to bring kelli home. coming up, why a perfect stranger cared so much about kelli-- and he would be found. andrea canning (voiceover): --who he believed had taken her, and his risky scheme to get the man to talk. he buys that? hook, line, and sinker. andrea canning (voiceover): when "dateline" continues. ♪♪ stay ahead of your moderate-to-severe eczema. and show off clearer skin and less itch with dupixent, the #1 prescribed biologic by dermatologists and allergists, that helps heal your skin from within. serious allergic reactions can occur that can be severe. tell your doctor about new or worsening eye problems such as eye pain or vision changes

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