By Jack Brewer and Erica Lukes
If you or someone you know is in crisis, call 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call the network at 800-273-8255, text HOME to 741741 or visit
SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for additional resources.
The Uintah County Attorney's Office recently provided Expanding Frontiers Research another release of records in response to a March 1 request seeking material on an abandoned motorcycle and a deceased body recovered near Skinwalker Ranch. The request was initially denied by the Uintah County Sheriff's Office (UCSO) and appealed to both the county's Chief Administrative Officer and the Utah State Records Committee.
Records subsequently obtained indicate Andrew Crowe committed suicide, shooting himself within a few yards of an isolated road in Uintah County. As previously reported by EFR, Crowe left his Harley Davidson on the roadside with a several-page letter to Thomas Winterton, a cast member of The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch and organizer of Uintah County's PhenomeCon. The letter warned of paranormal dangers at the ranch as cultivated by Winterton and his fellow cable television and conference cast members, referred to as “talents” in their Uintah County PhenomeCon contracts. Police surmise from the letter that Crowe wanted Winterton to have his Harley.
A July 18 email from the county attorney's office informed EFR of the release of three police video recordings that were created when the sheriff's office responded to reports of the abandoned motorcycle. “The redactions being made to these documents are pursuant to Utah Code Ann. §63G-2-302 to protect personal identifying information of individuals,” the Uintah County Attorney's Office wrote in the email. “We would like to acknowledge that there are still more records being reviewed that we will be providing as we receive and review them.”
The image above is taken from dash cam video recorded by the UCSO. It shows officers from the sheriff's office and Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) examining the letter to Winterton while standing in the snow and rain the morning of November 24, 2023 (Black Friday). The resulting law enforcement investigation required time and resources from multiple agencies and jurisdictions spanning at least two states. While records obtained indicate circumstances surrounding the motorcycle and its owner were primary points of interest, police notably showed no concern whatsoever about the dubious narratives of public safety hazards often promoted by the Skinwalker Ranch crew and enabled by Uintah County public officials. Law enforcement eventually requested to search Skinwalker Ranch for the presumed deceased person and, as a matter of fact, a responding officer initially laughed when they first saw the large envelope addressed to Tom Winterton left at the motorcycle.
The clip below is taken from a longer UCSO body cam video. It includes the officer discovering the letter. He then describes items he observed on the bike to the BIA officer and can be heard laughing as he holds the envelope up for his colleague to see the apparent intended recipient, Thomas Winterton.
The officer then begins to read the letter aloud. As it becomes increasingly difficult to follow, he reads and comments, “It is a refined power source... event horizon... what?”
Upon heading back to his vehicle, the officer remarks, “Alright, gimme a sec, this is gettin' weird.”
View the video recording in its entirety, as well as the two other videos, as uploaded to Google Drive.
The following clip is taken from UCSO dash cam video of the same sequence of events. The UCSO officer is observed examining and photographing the contents of the bike. After discovering the large envelope addressed to Winterton, he can be seen gesturing to the BIA officer to come have a look. They then share the pages of the letter, contemplating what it indicates.
The clip below is from a longer video from a camera pointed at the backseat of the UCSO vehicle. The video serves as audio confirmation of conversations taking place by radio between the officer and other UCSO personnel. He requests information on Thomas Winterton, to which he is advised of Winterton's possible status as manager of Skinwalker Ranch. “Copy,” the responding officer replies, “that might make sense,” adding he will be submitting more information. He then begins backing the vehicle down the narrow road and away from the scene.
The first of the three recently released longer-length videos begins with officers initially arriving at the scene of the motorcycle. They speak to surrounding residents. The owner of a nearby farm explains he found the bike and a plastic bag taped to its windscreen. The bag contained a signed title along with handwritten operating instructions. The man directly states there was no suicide note in the plastic bag but interpreted the act was implied. He further stated he had not searched the surrounding area because of his concerns about locating a body, suggesting perhaps police should have that responsibility.
Video contained in the release additionally shows the responding UCSO officer conferring with a colleague by cell phone about proper protocols for impounding the motorcycle. The footage provides multiple angles of police response to the incident, both literally and figuratively.
Read the EFR previous reporting about how law enforcement agencies collaborated to locate the body of the deceased individual about three months after the motorcycle was found abandoned on Thanksgiving. Access a folder containing the most recently released video records and view all of the records obtained thus far on the case.
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