Michigan Cold Case: The Mysterious Vanishing Of Jacob Cabinaw

It's been nearly 15 years since Jacob Cabinaw was last seen from his home in Traverse City. The Grand Traverse Sheriff's Department is putting a new push on this astonishing cold case.

Cabinaw was last seen at home in Traverse City on March 31, 2021. Credit card charges show constant southern movement. Gas in TC, snacks 10 miles down the road, ATM in Cadillac. Late night gas purchase at Exit 66 on I-94 in Mattawan.

Video surveillance at the gas station in Mattawan is the last image police have of Cabinaw.

Jacob's cellphone last pinged in Springfield, Missouri. His car was pulled over for a routine traffic check in Missouri. He was spotted by a patrol officer in Arkansas sleeping in a rest area. None of the law enforcement officers who encountered Cabinaw on his journey south noted anything off.

That was the last confirmed sighting of Jacob.

His phone had either turned off or drained and it never pinged again.

Cabinaw's ATM card was used in Oklahoma but the transaction was refused due to insufficient funds.

His card was used twice in Texas to purchase gas. Once in Fort Worth and Sweetwater.  There's no video evidence of Jacob so there's no definitive proof that it was Jacob who used that card.

Sweetwater is in West Texas between Abilene and El Paso. Jacob's vehicle's VIN was flagged in Mexico, but there is no record of Cabinaw crossing the border.

After Texas and that compelling clue in Mexico, the trail goes cold. And it's been cold since spring 2010.

Now nearly 15 years later the Grand Traverse Sheriffs Department has put a renewed spotlight on the case, posting in part on social media.

Over the last few months, the Grand Traverse County Sheriff’s Office has communicated with representatives from the Michigan State Police, Michigan State Police Crime Lab and Western Michigan University Cold Case Program to develop and implement an investigative plan.

The Cabinaw case has attracted the attention of true crime podcasters and the venerable Unsolved Mysteries.

His young children are now adults. One has spoken to northern Michigan media and shared his 'complicated' feelings. Did foul play keep Cabinaw away from his family or did Cabinaw leave of his own volition and abandon his family?

Those lingering doubts and unanswered questions are what trouble the missing man's family while investigators take a fresh look at the case.