The Narrows

were last known to be in Las Vegas, where police are heading the investigation, and two disappeared while on trips to Laughlin and Primm. None of the men left any indication in then-hotel rooms or vehicles or homes as to where they were going or what became of them.
    "At this point it is a stone-cold mystery," said Detective Todd Ritz of Vegas Metro's Missing Persons unit. "People disappear from here or anywhere all the time. But they usually show up later, dead or alive. And there's usually an explanation. With these guys there's nothing. It's a thin air case."
    But Ritz and other detectives are sure there is an explanation and they are enlisting the public's help in finding it Last week detectives from Las Vegas, Laughlin and Primm gathered at the Vegas Metro offices to compare notes and set an investigative strategy. They also went public with the case, hoping photographs of the men and their stories would spark new information from the public. On Tuesday, a week later, Ritz reported that not much in the way of usable information had come in.
    "There has got to be someone who knows something or saw something or heard something," said Ritz in a telephone interview. "Six guys just don't get up and disappear without somebody knowing something. We need that somebody to come forward."
    As Ritz said, missing persons cases are numerous. The fact that these six men came to Nevada for business or pleasure and never went home is what makes this case different.
    The publicity comes at a time Las Vegas is once again redefining its image. Gone is the marketing strategy that billed the neon city as a family destination. Sin is back in. In the past three years numerous clubs featuring nude or partially nude dancers have been licensed, and many of the casi- nos on the fabled strip have produced shows featuring nudity and strictly adult subject matter. Billboards featuring nudity in their advertisements have been erected and drawn the ire of some community activists. It has all helped change the complexion of the city. Once again it is being marketed as a leave-the-kids-at-home adult playground.
    As the recent billboard skirmishes suggest, the change hasn't played well with everyone and many speculate that the disappearances of these six travelers may in some indirect way be linked to the region's return to an anything-goes atmosphere.
    "Let's face it," said Ernie Gelson, a columnist for the Las Vegas Sun, "they tried the family fun thing and it didn't play. The town is going back to what plays. And what plays is what pays. Now, is that the missing link that connects these six guys? I don't know. Maybe we never will."
    Still, Gelson is uneasy about jumping to any conclusions that would link the missing men to the changing image of Las Vegas.
    "First of all, remember, they didn't all disappear from Las Vegas," he said. "And second to that, there are not enough facts to substantiate any theory at the moment. I think we have to sit back and let the mystery resolve itself before we jump on any bandwagons."
    The missing men are:
    – Gordon Stansley, 41, of Los Angeles, missing since May 17,2001. He checked into the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas but his bed was never slept in and his suitcase never unpacked. He is married and has two children.
    – John Edward Dunn, 39, of Ottawa, Canada, who was driving from his home to Los Angeles on a vacation. He never made it to his intended destination, his brother's home in Granada Hills. Dunn's 30-foot recreational vehicle was found Dec. 29,2001, at an RV park in Laughlin. That was 20 days after his expected arrival in Granada Hills.
    – Lloyd Rockland, 61, disappeared from Las Vegas on June 17,2002. His plane from Atlanta arrived at 11 a.m. at McCarran International Airport. He picked up a Hertz rental car, but he never checked in to the MGM Grand, where he had a reservation. His car was returned to the Hertz rental car center at the airport at 2 p.m. the next day but nobody seems to remember the father of four and grandfather of three being the one who returned it.
    – Fenton Weeks, 29, of Dallas, TX, was reported missing Jan. 25, 2003, after he did not return from a business trip to Las Vegas. Police determined he had checked in to the Golden Nugget in downtown Las Vegas and attended the first day of an electronics exposition held at the Las Vegas Convention Center but was not in attendance on the second and third days. His wife reported him missing. He has no children.
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