The Mystery Surrounding Shannon LaBau’s Disappearance
A trip with a close friend to purchase a dream car may have led to a young father’s murder.
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Shannon LaBau was a 23-year-old young man living in Helena, Montana just trying to make a life for himself and his young family. He was known as a mischievous jokester who loved to be with people and enjoyed the company of his family. He was exceptionally close to his mother, Sally, and always made time for her.
Not long after Shannon graduated from high school he started dating a young woman by the name of Leslie. It wasn’t long before the two of them brought a baby girl into the world whom Shannon adored. However, Shannon and Leslie’s relationship was tumultuous so the couple never married and lived apart from each other.
In order to make ends meet, Shannon worked as a chef at a local sports bar where he was well-liked by the staff. He was willing to lend a hand when needed and to pick up an extra shift when a coworker couldn’t make it to work.
Shannon was not one who chose to keep a large circle of friends as he preferred his family over most people. However, in high school, he befriended a man named Steve Rummel once he discovered they both had a love of weightlifting and working out. The two men maintained their friendship after their high school graduation and into their adult years.
Although how Shannon and Steve maintained their friendship baffled Shannon’s family as the men were known to be complete opposites from each other. Shannon was a young man who lacked self-confidence as well as kind and sweet to those around him while Steve was rough around the edges and had a reputation of being a bully with an anger problem.
Missing
Shannon had just sold his old car and was looking for a new one when Steve told him about a muscle car he thought Shannon would like being sold by a farmer in the neighboring town of Townsend. On February 23, 1999, Shannon made plans to go with Steve to take a look at the car to see if he’d like to purchase it.
At 9:00 a.m. the local bank’s security cameras recorded Shannon on Kessler Street in downtown Helena withdrawing $3,000 to take with him just in case he decided…
