[OVERVIEW]
Robert Dennis Blair Adams, better known by just Blair Adams, was born on December 28th of 1964 in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada.
People who knew him said he was very optimistic about life, always had a smile on his face and was overall a kind and normal guy.
Adams had a history of drugs and alcohol but friends and family insisted that he had sober for the two years before his death. However, many people who follow this case believe drugs had something to do with this case. But we will get to that soon.
[ACTING STRANGE]
Weeks prior to his death his family grew concerned as he started to become increasingly paranoid, insisting someone was watching him and told his mother "it would kill him." Whenever his mother would ask him he would respond with "I don't think I should tell you about it."
He wouldn't sleep much because of this, and paranoia + sleep deprivation is never a good thing.
On July 7, 1996 he withdrew most of the money from his bank account and emptied his safety deposit box that was filled with cash, jewelry, gold coins and platinum. He then attempted to get into the United States, but when boarder patrol saw how much he was carrying with him they assumed he was a drug mule and took him in. They went through his records and found that he had a history of assault and drugs. Because of this, they denied him entry.
Two days later on July 9th Blair tried once again to get into the United States, but was denied again after he matched the description of someone who stole a car. The car was found just a few miles away from where he was trying to get across. Because of this they denied him but couldn't hold him as there wasn't enough evidence to hold him.
When he was there however he had scratches all over his body for reasons unknown.
The next day was when Blair finally managed to get in the United States when he flew from Vancouver to Seattle, Washington. To get to the airport he rented a car, a Nissan Altima which he abandoned as soon as he got to the airport.
When he landed in Seattle he bought another ticket, this time to Germany. One of his ex girlfriends lived there so after his death she was contacted but she stated she had no contact with Blair about coming to Germany.
Blair however never went to Germany. Instead he got a different flight, one to Washington DC. Once there he rented a Toyota Camry and drive to Troy, Virginia. While there he backed up his car into another man vehicle. There was only minor damage so the man wasn't worried and recalled Blair as being nice but also seemed in a rush. Later that evening he arrived in Knoxville, Tennessee.
He stopped at a gas station where he complained to the gas station attendant that he couldn't get his key to work. The employee called a repair service where a man named Gerald Sap was dispatched. Gerald told Blair that the key was the wrong key for the car. The key he had been trying to use was for a Nissan and not a Camry. Gerald said he told Blair to check his pockets, maybe he had stuck the Camry key in them but Blair insisted that the key he had was the Camry key and refused to check his pockets.
Gerald towed the car to a repair shop and took Blair to a nearby hotel. Blair booked a room and paid with $100, however when the hotel employee went to give him his change back Blair has already walked away. He never went back to the hotel.
[BODY FOUND]
On July 11, 1996 his body was found at a construction site with only a shirt on, but even the shirt was open. His pants and shoes were found near his body.
Scattered around his body was all of the money he had, around $4,000. In addition to the money there was a black duffel bag filled with maps and a black fanny pack which was filled with gold, jewelry and platinum coins.
He had many cuts and abrasions. Some of the wounds seemed to have been defensive wounds. He had also suffered a violent blow that ruptured his stomach. He also had an injury on his head that was thought to have been from a crowbar or a club.
His official cause of death was sepsis (a serious condition resulting from the presence of harmful microorganisms in the blood or other tissues and the body's response to their presence, potentially leading to the malfunctioning of various organs, shock, and death.)
There are two main theories about his death.
[SEX RELATED]
Because of the state of his body (no pants, shirt ripped open) the first thought was this could be a sex related murder.
There was no sign of sexual assault to his body however. This doesn't mean it wasn't sex related. The killer could have had a hard time getting a roused and took his anger out on Blair, killing him. It's happened before with numerous serial killers, so it isn't far fetched at all.
However, to many this kill seemed very personally motivated, which is where the second theory comes into play.
[PAST CAUGHT UP]
As stated before, Blair had a history of assault and drugs and many think he either got back into it or his past caught up with him.
With the way he kept changing his destinations, the way he kept thinking someone was after him, the fact his killer(s) didn't take any money and in fact spread it around him, and the blatant overkill, it seemed to many like he pissed off the wrong people, most likely a drug lord.
Many believe he refused to tell anyone because he knew that would put him in danger, this could explain his paranoia as well. And the fact he was nearly naked could have been a way to embarrass him even after death.
To people who follow the case this is the most well believed theory.
[INVESTIGATION]
The investigation didn't go anywhere as they didn't really have any evidence or reliable tips.
The only DNA they had was a strand of hair found in Blair's fists, which was never matched to anyone.
The only tip that seemed important was when two women claimed they saw Blair and another man outside of Crackle Barrel. They did a sketch but this also went no where.