FBI exhume the body of Alonzo Brooks 16 years on from his death at a Kansas party following a flurry of tips after cold case was featured in Netflix's 'Unsolved Mysteries'
Investigators have exhumed the body of Alonzo Brooks 16 years after his death at a Kansas party following a surge in interest in his case when it appeared on Netflix's Unsolved Mysteries docuseries.
Brooks was 23 when he disappeared after the party in the rural town of La Cygne on the night of April 3, 2004.
His body was found by a creek on May 1, and his family have long insisted he was murdered.
He was one of only three black people at the gathering of 100 revelers, and some partygoers made racist comments, Stephen McAllister, U.S. Attorney, said.
McAllister said there were also numerous reports of multiple fights breaking out.
Alonzo Brooks, 23, died following an April 3, 2004 party in La Cygne, Kansas
Brooks' body was exhumed from a cemetery in Topeka, Kansas on Tuesday
He added that Brooks' ride to the party had left without him. When Brooks failed to make it home by the next day, his family knew something was wrong.
Brooks' body was found on May 1, 2004
A search team of 50 people set out to find Brooks when he disappeared.
His body was so badly decomposed when it was found that his cause of death was deemed inconclusive.
His friends and family believe that he was murdered in a racially motivated attack.
Brooks' case was featured as part of Netflix's Unsolved Mysteries series, and during the filming last year McAllister became aware of the cold case.
The show highlighting Brooks' disappearance aired on July 1, and in the first 24 hours after the episode arrived on the streaming service the FBI reported 'at least three credible tips' in relation to the case.
The FBI have also received 20 other tips in relation to the other cases featured in the first six episodes of the show.
On July 11, just over a week after Unsolved Mysteries premiered on Netflix, the FBI and Department of Justice announced that Brooks' case had been reopened as a result of new leads from the series.
Officials were seen with an excavator at Brook's grave at a cemetery in Topeka, Kansas on Tuesday.
'I can confirm the body was exhumed today as part of the Brooks investigation,' said Jim Cross, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The FBI is now offering a $100,000 reward for information leading to arrest and conviction
FBI Special Agent in Charge Timothy Langan also announced that FBI is offering a reward of up to $100,000 to anyone who has information about Brooks' disappearance.
'There are many unanswered questions that surround Alonzo's death,' said Langan.
'Someone knows something and we are hopeful that with the passage of time and this significant reward this renewed effort will produce results and provide closure for the Brooks family.'
Maria Ramirez, Brooks' mother, told NBC's Dateline that she and Brooks' family have long believed that there was a racial component to his mysterious death.
'I'm Mexican and his father is black,' she said. 'So he's mixed. They didn't just target one race. Or kill one race. They killed two. He was targeted because of the color of his skin.'
Brooks' father, Billy Brooks, told the show that he hopes the Netflix series' renewed attention on the case — and the FBI's reward — will help the family finally get answers.
'It's a significant amount of money,' he stated. 'I hope it pushes someone to do the right thing and come forward.'
The circumstances surrounding Brooks' death have never been fully explained
Leena Ramana, another FBI agent, agreed that the Netflix show was crucial in reviving interest in Brooks' case.
'It's been 16 years, but we hope that with this passage of time, someone who has information will come forward,' she said.
'Some of these kids, who are adults now, may have been scared to come forward before, or may not have known what they saw was important.
'But any piece of information is significant and could be the missing puzzle piece we need to solve this case.'
Maria Ramirez, pictured with her son Alonzo Brooks, hopes the Netflix series provides answers
McAllister, the U.S. attorney, said that 'the code of silence must be broken'.
'We are investigating whether Alonzo was murdered,' he told KSNT News.
'His death certainly was suspicious, and someone, likely multiple people, know what happened that night in April 2004.
'It is past time for the truth to come out. The code of silence must be broken.
'Alonzo's family deserves to know the truth, and it is time for justice to be served.'
He said he was convinced there were 'people who have been keeping terrible secrets all these years and bearing a horrible burden.'
'We are asking one or more of them to come forward now and to lay down that burden at last, so that we can ease a family's suffering, and serve the cause of justice.'
