Are You Ready to Solve the Mystery of ‘Body in the Bay’?
Patrick Mullins was an experienced boater who disappeared on a routine outing. What happened to him?
By Steve Helling
Nov. 1, 2022
‘Unsolved Mysteries’ Volume 3: What Happened to Patrick Mullins? - Netflix Tudum
On Jan. 27, 2013, Patrick Mullins took his boat out on the small river near his home, as he’d done hundreds of times before. Patrick, a popular teacher and school librarian, had spent his entire life on the water and knew the area intimately. But on that day, Patrick didn’t return home. The following day, the Coast Guard found his empty boat drifting in open water in Tampa Bay, and there was no indication of what had happened to Patrick.
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Nine days later, Patrick’s body was found floating miles away from where his boat was recovered. He was bound to a boat anchor from the waist down and had sustained a shotgun blast to the head. Initially, investigators thought Patrick took his own life, but he seemed to be happily married with no financial issues or history of depression. Additionally, the forensics didn’t add up: How could Patrick shoot himself in the head with an unwieldy shotgun and not get any blood in the boat? And where was the gun? Could he have been murdered?
Nearly a decade later, Patrick’s manner of death is still classified as “undetermined” and the questions remain: What events led to his death? Did he witness some illegal activity on the river and get silenced? Family members suspect the possible involvement of an acquaintance who acted strangely after Patrick’s death — and later died of a drug overdose.
Patrick's Headaches Before His Death | Unsolved Mysteries V3E7What was on his mind?
A week before he died, Patrick began to suffer from severe headaches that may have been a result of stress. Was he harboring a secret that he couldn’t even tell his wife? Here, his wife, Jill, speculates about what may have happened.
Photos of Patrick Mullins
See photos of Patrick with his friends and family before he disappeared.
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Pat and Jill went back to college to earn their Library of Science Master’s degrees.
Pat and his brother, Gray.
Pat and Jill Mullins.
Suspicions were raised when new smudges of unidentified red paint were discovered on Pat’s boat after it was recovered at sea. Many have wondered if this mysterious red paint rubbed off an attacker’s boat that had pulled up to Pat’s before he died.
Pat loved fishing on the Braden River.
Because Pat was extremely knowledgeable and skilled at engine repair, he might have stopped to help someone with engine trouble on the water.
Pat with his sons.
Patrick Lee Mullins.
Official case photos
From photos of Patrick’s boat to images of his skull reconstruction, authorities have documented every step of their investigation. But is there a detail they could have missed?
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Several fresh, unexplained red paint smudges were found on Pat’s Stumpnocker when it was discovered floating unmanned off the coast of Florida.
Front view of the knot that tied Pat to his boat anchor. He was an expert at knots used in boating, and his family does not believe he tied this knot.
Back view of the knot that tied Pat to his boat anchor.
When Pat’s body was found, he was only wearing one shoe. Some theorize that Pat took off his shoe in order to pull the shotgun trigger with his toe, though this would be extremely difficult to do in a small boat at sea, and virtually impossible to not have blood spray into the boat’s interior.
Experts reconstructed the fragmented pieces of Pat’s skull, numbering nine traumatic impacts (“defects'') to the skull. Pieces of skull are missing due to damage caused by the shotgun blast. Additional wounds cannot be ruled out.
Experts reconstructed the fragmented pieces of Pat’s skull, numbering nine traumatic impacts (“defects'') to the skull. Pieces of skull are missing due to damage caused by the shotgun blast. Additional wounds cannot be ruled out.
Experts reconstructed the fragmented pieces of Pat’s skull, numbering nine traumatic impacts (“defects'') to the skull. Pieces of skull are missing due to damage caused by the shotgun blast. Additional wounds cannot be ruled out.
Thin wooden dowels are inserted into Pat’s reconstructed skull to show gunshot trajectories. The entrance wound is on the right side of the skull.
Thin wooden dowels are inserted into Pat’s reconstructed skull to show gunshot trajectories. The entrance wound is on the right side of the skull.
This anchor was found tied with rope to Pat’s body in four to six feet of water near Egmont Key.
Pat's Stumpnocker was docked at the U.S. Coast Guard Station after being found floating, unmanned, between buoys 9 and 10 in the Tampa Bay shipping channel.
Pat’s unmanned Stumpnocker was discovered floating northwest of Egmont Key in the Tampa Bay shipping channel.
This section of rope was found in Pat’s Stumpnocker.
View of all items found in Pat’s boat when it was discovered unmanned at sea. None of Pat’s blood was found in the boat.
Some of the items found in Pat’s boat when it was discovered unmanned at sea. Dark smudges on the seats are areas that have been rubbed free of fiberglass coloring.
The origin of red paint smudges on Pat’s Stumpnocker has never been identified.
Damon’s boat was painted red, similar to the mysterious red smudges discovered on Pat’s boat.
Download additional evidence
See more bonus material from “Body in the Bay,” including private investigation reports and US Coast Guard documentation.
Watch the episode
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See something that might be important? Go to Unsolved.com and let us know.
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