Daniel Edward Thomas was 29 when he disappeared while traveling from his hometown of Butte, Montana, to his home in Portland, Oregon. He spent time with family before the holidays and began his return trip on or around December 16, 2012, riding with a friend in an unknown vehicle. Friends and family last heard from him on December 18, 2012, when he was last seen in Missoula and made a phone call saying he was on his way back to Oregon.

At the time he vanished Daniel was described as a Caucasian male with brown hair and brown eyes, about 6 feet 2 inches and 200 pounds, wearing a green Carhartt jacket and dark-colored jeans. His cell phone and bank cards showed no further activity after December 18, and he never arrived in Oregon. The Butte/Silver Bow County Law Enforcement Division handled the investigation, which remains an active missing persons case with few public details.

Did anyone in the Missoula or I-90 corridor area see Daniel or the vehicle he was traveling in around December 18, 2012?