In the fall of 2007, 18-year-old Augustine 'Augie' Lee Floyd, a member of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, disappeared under troubling circumstances. On the evening of October 12, 2007, the young college student from Suttons Bay, Michigan, attended a T-Pain concert at Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant. Following the concert, he went to a party on the nearby Isabella Indian Reservation. An altercation at the party led to him being thrown out, but he later returned. The last known sighting of Augie was in the early morning hours, around 4:00 a.m., standing next to his car, a black 1995 Cadillac DeVille. He was wearing a dark-colored sweatshirt, a white t-shirt, dark jeans, and white sneakers. Neither Augie nor his vehicle, which had distinctive rear-end damage and a trunk held shut with a bungee cord, have been seen since.
The disappearance of Augie Floyd was considered uncharacteristic, as he was a student at Northwestern Michigan College and was not known to be out of touch with his family. The investigation into his vanishing was launched, involving multiple law enforcement agencies, including the Saginaw Chippewa Tribal Police and the Leelanau County Sheriff's Department. Searches were conducted in Isabella County, but yielded no signs of Augie or his car. The case, which initially began as a missing person investigation, was reclassified as a probable homicide in December 2008. Authorities have indicated they have a suspect, but believe multiple people may have been involved in his presumed death. Despite ongoing efforts and pleas for public assistance, the case has remained unsolved for many years.
The years since Augustine Floyd's disappearance have been filled with uncertainty for his loved ones and community. A special unit from the Bureau of Indian Affairs has since taken on the case, continuing to seek information from the public and offering a reward for tips that could lead to a breakthrough. The circumstances of that night, including the argument at the party, remain a focal point of the investigation. Despite the passage of time, law enforcement and his family hold out hope for answers and closure in the perplexing case of the young man who vanished after a night out.
Augustine Lee "Augie" Floyd was an 18-year-old man who disappeared after traveling to Mount Pleasant, Michigan, on October 12, 2007. A member of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, Augustine had left his home in Suttons Bay to attend a T-Pain concert at Central Michigan University. He reportedly planned to meet a young woman named Kendra or Kenda whom he had first encountered online. After the concert, he attended a gathering on the Isabella Indian Reservation. What began as a night of music and socializing ended with Augustine vanishing before he could make the long drive home, leaving his family without any message explaining where he had gone.
During the party, Augustine reportedly became involved in an altercation with other guests and was ordered to leave. He drove away but later returned to the gathering. The final reported sighting placed him outside during the early morning hours of October 13, standing near or traveling in his black 1995 Cadillac DeVille. No confirmed witness has publicly described seeing him after that point. He never reached Suttons Bay, never contacted his grandmother or siblings and did not resume his normal responsibilities. His Cadillac disappeared with him, creating the possibility that the vehicle itself may contain evidence essential to understanding what happened.
Augustine's car was especially recognizable. The black four-door Cadillac had rear-end damage, and its trunk was held closed with a bungee cord. Records have listed differing Michigan license-plate numbers for the vehicle, including BRK3733 in his NamUs information and AAN 4697 in early public reports. Despite the car's unusual condition and the widespread attention given to the disappearance, neither Augustine nor the Cadillac has been recovered. Investigators searched wooded areas, fields, waterways, ravines and isolated roads throughout Isabella County, hoping the damaged vehicle might be visible to hunters, residents or search crews. The absence of such a large and identifiable object has remained one of the case's most troubling mysteries.
More than 120 volunteers participated in a large organized search during the first weeks of the investigation. The Saginaw Chippewa Tribal Police worked alongside the Leelanau County Sheriff's Office, Grand Traverse Band Tribal Police, Michigan Indian Law Officers, the Michigan State Police Crime Laboratory, the Isabella County Community Emergency Response Team, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Investigators conducted dozens of interviews and followed numerous tips, while a round-the-clock command post coordinated parts of the search. Authorities said some people connected to the circumstances had altered their accounts or appeared to be withholding information, although police carefully distinguished those individuals from formally identified suspects.
Augustine was approximately five feet ten inches tall and weighed between 183 and 185 pounds. He had short brown or black hair, brown eyes and tattoos on his neck and upper right arm. He was believed to have been wearing a dark sweatshirt, a white T-shirt, dark jeans and white sneakers on the night he disappeared. Augustine was enrolled at Northwestern Michigan College and was described as someone whose prolonged silence was deeply out of character. He had grown up as one of seven children and had already endured extraordinary tragedy before reaching adulthood. His mother was murdered by her husband in 2002, and Augustine was injured while attempting to protect her during the attack. After her death, he lived with his grandmother, who became one of the family members left waiting for him to return from Mount Pleasant.
There were legal difficulties in Augustine's life at the time, including outstanding warrants after he failed to appear for sentencing in Grand Rapids. Investigators were aware of those circumstances, but his family did not believe they explained his complete disappearance or his failure to contact anyone. He left behind the people closest to him without warning, and even his highly distinctive car vanished without a trace. The confrontation at the party, the changing or incomplete accounts reported during early interviews and the disappearance of both Augustine and his vehicle increasingly persuaded investigators that something violent had occurred rather than that he had simply decided to leave.
By December 2008, authorities had shifted the focus of the investigation from a missing-person inquiry to a probable homicide case. Reports indicated that investigators had narrowed their attention to at least one suspect and believed several people may have participated in Augustine's presumed killing or knew what happened afterward. However, no publicly identified person has been arrested or charged with causing his disappearance. Without Augustine's remains, his vehicle or publicly disclosed forensic evidence, authorities have not been able to present a prosecutable account of how he died, where the crime occurred or where he and the Cadillac were taken.
The investigation has continued rather than fading into an inactive file. In 2025, the Bureau of Indian Affairs Office of Justice Services Missing and Murdered Unit renewed public attention to Augustine's case in partnership with the Saginaw Chippewa Tribal Police. Federal authorities described the matter as open and offered a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to Augustine's discovery. Investigators said progress had been made over the years but emphasized that the disappearance remained unsolved and that information held by members of the public could still provide the break needed to bring answers to his family. The renewed involvement reflects both the specific unanswered questions in Augustine's case and the broader effort to address disappearances and suspected murders involving Indigenous people.
Augustine's DNA profile was developed from a direct reference sample and entered into national databases, providing a means of identifying him if remains are recovered. His NamUs case remains published, and the Leelanau County Sheriff's Office, Saginaw Chippewa Tribal Police and Bureau of Indian Affairs continue to be associated with the investigation. For his family, the passing years have not diminished the need to know what happened after he returned to the party or why his Cadillac has never surfaced. In overview, Augustine Floyd attended a concert in Mount Pleasant, became involved in a confrontation at a gathering on tribal land and was last seen near his damaged black Cadillac during the early morning of October 13, 2007. Authorities believe he was likely the victim of homicide and suspect that more than one person may know what happened, but no arrest has been announced, neither Augustine nor his vehicle has been found, and the case remains an open search for the truth and for the chance to finally bring Augie home.
Last Seen: Oct 12, 2007
