On March 10, 2025, Officer L. Grayson of the Lanesfield Police Department filed an official report following a welfare check at Hawthorne Cabin #6, located along County Route 17B in a remote wooded region of Lanesfield, Vermont. The request for a wellness visit originated from a colleague of Ethan Caulder, a well-known investigative journalist who had been residing at the cabin for over a week and had missed two scheduled virtual check-ins. Officer Grayson arrived on scene at approximately 09:04 AM and observed that Caulder’s vehicle was parked in front of the property. The front door was closed and undamaged, while the rear door was found ajar, though there were no signs of forced entry at either point of access. Inside, the cabin appeared recently used: a mug containing warm coffee sat on a cluttered desk, and a laptop remained powered on, displaying an open document timestamped at 14:12 on March 8—the last verified activity from Caulder. Despite the presence of personal items including clothing, electronics, and writing materials, the cabin showed no evidence of a struggle, violence, or organized departure. Notably, partial boot tracks were discovered outside the rear entrance, leading northwest into the tree line, though the impressions had begun to degrade due to ongoing snow melt, making it difficult to determine direction or identity with certainty. Environmental conditions suggested recent thaw and light overnight precipitation, further complicating trace collection. The responding officer secured the location and flagged the case for immediate referral to the Dune Intelligence Division (DID) due to Caulder’s involvement in politically sensitive reporting and a prior psychological record indicating elevated paranoia and fixation on perceived local corruption. Supporting documentation from Caulder’s psychologist, dated February 27, 2025, had recommended the suspension of fieldwork and further psychiatric evaluation, noting his refusal of medication and growing suspicion toward both institutions and individuals within the Lanesfield community. Given these converging factors—the sudden unexplained disappearance, ambiguous physical evidence, the subject’s declining mental health, and possible occupational threats—Officer Grayson formally closed the preliminary investigation and escalated the case to federal-level review under Case File 742-A.
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